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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28713747">Tobio, Age 1.5</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rufescent/pseuds/Rufescent'>Rufescent</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Adoption, Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Awkward Kageyama Tobio, Established Relationship, Family Dynamics, Found Family, Gen, Homophobia, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kageyama Tobio Needs a Hug, M/M, Team Parents Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, the Daichi/Suga is tooth-rotting fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 10:21:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>30,457</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28713747</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rufescent/pseuds/Rufescent</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Tobio, age 1.5 needs a new family. He has a troubled background and needs love and a stable environment." Suga and Daichi have been waiting to adopt for years now and jump at the chance to finally have a baby of their own. Except due to a clerical error, "Tobio, age 1.5," is actually a 15-year-old homophobe with a criminal past. All does not go smoothly.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kageyama Tobio &amp; Sawamura Daichi, Kageyama Tobio &amp; Sugawara Koushi, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>77</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>228</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. New Beginnings</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>A few notes before we get started:</p><p>One, this was deeply inspired by the Swedish film “Patrik, Age 1.5,” (which I totally recommend y’all check out, it’s great)!</p><p>Two, I wanted to keep the gang in Japan, for aesthetic reasons, but Japan has NOT legalized gay marriage nor same-sex adoption, and the latter was necessary for this story, so I’m taking creative liberties.</p><p>Three, heed the “referenced child abuse” and “homophobia” tags because while nothing will be overly explicit or violent, both remain very sensitive topics throughout the story. Please be safe when reading.</p><p>I hope you enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Relax, Koushi,” Daichi said for the third time, coming up behind the other man and softly kissing his cheek, right below the beauty mark. “You did everything you could, the rest is up to them.”</p><p>Suga frowned with his hands on his hips, eyeing the table filled from top to bottom with homemade treats: trays of cookies still warm from the oven on one end all the way to sweet mochi cakes powdered white and in the soft hues of pink, orange, and green on the other.</p><p>“I’m just nervous,” he told the desserts, “I want to have a good relationship with them.” In a quick motion, Suga turned on his heel, facing his partner and enveloping him in a loose hug. “I want to make friends,” he confessed, muffled by Daichi’s sweater.</p><p>“You will,” Daichi confirmed, without a doubt, holding him close.</p><p>“I will,” Suga parroted, his lips curling into a hopeful smile. He gently leaned back, staring into deep brown eyes. “<em> We </em> will.”</p><p>Nearly ten minutes later, the doorbell rang, and new faces and new families continued to flow in and out over the course of the next few hours.</p><p>It had actually been Daichi’s idea to throw the housewarming party. He’d taken up the job of handwriting and delivering over twenty invitations to welcome neighboring households and new coworkers to get to know them and their new home. This was their chance for a new start, a raised glass for new beginnings. </p><p>And it was honestly going really well.</p><p>Suga giggled into his glass of saké, his cheeks dusted pink and his eyes bright, glowing amber as the sun started to set through the open window across from them. A pile of paper plates, only crumbs remaining, were stacked together in a weak attempt at organization.</p><p>“You must be joking,” a woman exclaimed, her smile wobbly as she tried to contain her amusement. She shared a conspiring look with Sugawara as she reached out a hand to swat at her husband’s shoulder.</p><p>The man shook his head, faux-doleful. “I wish I was.”</p><p>Sugawara and the woman, Kiyoko, broke into peels of laughter. At this point, they would have found a normal banana the funniest thing in the world. The man shook his head fondly.</p><p>The sound of the front door opening and a fresh chorus of greeting had Suga politely excusing himself to welcome the newest addition to their party, and he cheerfully sidestepped circles of people happily conversing and the odd placement of chairs shifted around to accommodate their growing population.</p><p>As soon as Suga came into view, the unfamiliar woman smiled sheepishly, one hand gripping the shirt of a six year old, three cookies shoved into the child’s mouth as she blinked without guilt, and the other hand was raised in an awkward greeting as two pre-teens ran around her feet, yelling obscenities at each other.</p><p>“Welcome to the neighborhood,” she said, grimacing. A burly man, with hard features and a grumpy expression, nodded along.</p><p>“Thank you,” Suga answered sincerely, still touched by everyone who took the time to come say hello. He beckoned them further into the house, grinning mischievously, “There’s sweets for the little ones, and saké for the big ones.”</p><p>The man laughed, delighted, and his wife smiled gingerly at the sound. The kids immediately cheered at the notion of food, disappearing in the crowd as they raced each other for the cakes.</p><p>As Suga led the newcomers over to introduce (or re-acquaint) them to his previous conversation partners, he passed Daichi standing next to one of their potted chrysanthemums, dwarfed by the stoic-faced man next to him in formal attire and a purple tie, and they shared a proud smile at the night’s success in this brief moment of quiet before the conversations would pick up again.</p><p>As the night marched ahead, the house settled, blanketed under the emerging stars and rising moon, subdued but no less companionable.</p><p>There were more rounds of drinks and more glasses clinking together as neighbors cheered to new gossip and new friendships. </p><p>It was when the conversation about their local elementary school was winding down that Haya, the stay-at-home mom for the three rambunctious kids (who had since been sent home), asked curiously, “Oh, do you have children? I just realized we’ve been talking for so long, but I haven’t even met your wife!”</p><p>Her husband, Jun’ichi, pulled his eyes from the corner of the room to eye Suga with newfound interest.</p><p>Sugawara smiled, ignoring the way his heartbeat fluttered against his throat like the nervous wings of a butterfly. “I’m not married yet,” he started, and then stopped, his face lighting up as Daichi turned the corner, the taller man smiling goofily when their eyes met. “Oh, here he is,” he finished.</p><p>“He?” Haya mouthed to Kiyoko, but it was lost in the moment as Daichi appeared before them, kissing the side of Suga’s mouth and then turning to the group with an easy smile, leaning back with casual comfort.</p><p>Haya’s smile turned stale, her eyes flattening, and Jun’ichi raised an eyebrow in slight disbelief, his expression even. “Oh,” she said, now suddenly awkward, her gaze darting to the darkened window.</p><p>“This is Sawamura Daichi, my partner,” Suga introduced politely, beaming at them and ignoring the sudden tension with practiced ease.</p><p>Kiyoko and her husband, Tanaka Ryuu, murmured gentle “hello’s” and Haya and Jun’ichi followed quickly after, nodding their greeting. </p><p>Daichi asked, “You asked if we had kids?”</p><p>He nodded towards Haya, and she startled at the direct question, her fingers aggressively rubbing her wedding ring. Her husband made a quiet, disgruntled noise. “Oh yes, I did, I apologize about that, I didn’t mean—”</p><p>“Oh no no, it’s alright,” Suga laughed, resting a hand on Daichi’s shoulder and pulling him in close, his expression open and excited.</p><p>Daichi put his hand over Suga’s and said, “We’re adopting, actually. We’ve been approved by the authorities, so now we’re just waiting for our child.”</p><p>“Oh, that’s wonderful,” Kiyoko said, tucking a wayward curl behind her ear and leaning forward with delicate grace, “Congratulations.”</p><p>“Good luck, brother,” Tanaka said, but not unkindly.</p><p>“Ah, wow,” Haya said, glancing to the window again, shifting uncomfortably. She opened her mouth, but Jun’ichi asked before she could start making excuses, tone deceptively innocent, “I didn’t even know that was legal.”</p><p>Sugawara’s smile faltered, but Daichi’s didn’t, “Osaka has certified same-sex couples as foster parents for years now, and it seemed they thought the natural next step was adoption.”</p><p>“Natural?” Jun’ichi scoffed, leaning back and crossing his arms.</p><p>“Jun’ichi,” Haya hissed warningly under her breath, and then raising her head and smiling at them.</p><p>He ignored her, maintaining unflinching eye contact with Daichi. “It doesn’t seem natural… just the idea of it, of taking away another person's child to live in an unfamiliar and strange environment."</p><p>Haya imperceptibly relaxed, her hands finally resting in her lap instead of obsessively fiddling with her jewelry. “Ah, yes, yes,” she added supportively, “We have such a strong sense of blood ties, you know? How will the child develop a bond with her birth parents if she’s placed with a foster family? Truly a tragedy in the making.”</p><p>Suga made a noise of curiosity, open to hearing the discussion, but Daichi instead focused on the way Kiyoko frowned at the other woman, her face darkening like a coming winter storm. Tanaka seemed to pick up on it too.</p><p>Covering a yawn with the back of his hand, Tanaka stood, stretching an arm over his head. “Sorry to cut this short, but we’ve got to head out soon.” Daichi and Suga made to get up and walk them to the door like good hosts, but Tanaka waved them both down. He turned to face them fully, his back to the other married couple, and added, “We should do this again sometime. It was fun.”</p><p>“Thank you for having us,” Kiyoko joined in pleasantly, bowing her head. They nodded respectfully to Jun’ichi and Haya on their way out.</p><p>With just the four of them now, the mood seemed to shift, the flow unsettled, a leaf sending ripples across still waters. </p><p>Haya turned back from looking out the window to offer the couple a civil smile. “It’s getting dark, we should probably—”</p><p>“Where do you work, again?”</p><p>Suga shared a look with Daichi but answered candidly, “I’m starting at the elementary school down the road.”</p><p>“Police officer,” Daichi said with a shrug.</p><p>“I see, I see,” Haya interrupted, her voice high pitched, and she abruptly stood up, clasping her hands together. “How lucky we are to have you protecting us,” she squeaked, bowing quickly, “Thankyouforhavingus.”</p><p>Jun’ichi snorted, taking his sweet time getting up as she flapped her hands at him. “You’re making us look really suspicious, Haya,” he told her matter of factly. He faced them with an exaggerated eye roll, “We’re a law-abiding family, I promise. Must be missing the kids. You know how women are,” he joked.</p><p>Suga led the way to the front door, chuckling to fill the silence, and Daichi snorted at the canned sound.</p><p>Then it was just the two of them in a quiet — and moderately messy — house. A clock ticked gently somewhere in the background.</p><p>“We made the right decision... moving here?”</p><p>“Yeah. We did.”</p><p>They both moved at the same time, slowly pulling each other close, warm and safe, together.</p><p>“You think our baby will like it here?” Suga wondered, his mouth brushing the sensitive skin below Daichi’s ear, kisses turning into gentle pecks as he trailed a path down his partner’s neck.</p><p>Daichi’s soft laugh reverberated against Suga’s lips, and he allowed himself a secretive grin at the feeling. “Of course they will. With us as parents, what could go wrong?”</p><p>Suga pulled away to look into the taller man’s eyes, swatting at him. “Now look at what you did!”</p><p>“Wait, what did I do?” Daichi asked, sincerely confused as Suga pulled away from the hug and started making the motions to get ready for bed. “What did you mean?”</p><p>The other man just snickered at his distressed expression so Daichi pulled his face into a frown instead. “Fine, I see how it is.”</p><p>“Mhh hmm.”</p><p>When they were both in bed, huddled together in a new house and new neighborhood and new everything, Daichi whispered, “We’ll be good parents, I know it. You might have doubts, but I don’t.”</p><p>Suga peeked up through his eyelashes, humming faintly. It was so quiet they could hear each other breathe. “I just want to do it right."</p><p>“We will,” he assured.</p><hr/><p>When Daichi awoke, the first thing he did was turn and pat the empty spot beside him, blinking blearily as his alarm looped in the background. Oh yeah, on Mondays he started work later than Koushi.</p><p>As he brushed his teeth, Daichi found himself standing in front of an open door, staring at the shadow blue wallpaper and haphazard pile of stuffed animals, overflowing from the top of a woven basket. The baby crib was pushed against the wall, a fluffy pink blanket thrown over the side of the bars.</p><p>This was for a baby, for <em> their </em>baby.</p><p>Despite all his declarations of confidence and trust, his heartbeat thumped tellingly, like the stomp of an angry rabbit in warning. It was scary, the idea of opening up their home to a stranger. What if the baby didn’t like them? What if the baby was defective and the parents had rejected it for a reason? What if—</p><p>Shaking his head, Daichi sighed loudly, pushing the heel of his palms into his eyes. No, he couldn’t think like that… not when they were so eager for this. He promised his partner he was ready, he couldn’t back out now. Chin up, old boy.</p><p>He arrived for work ten minutes early, and cordially waved to the woman at the front window. She nodded respectfully, and he continued through the lobby to the briefing room to officially start off his day.</p><p>As the afternoon dragged into evening, Daichi shuffled his written reports together, stretching both arms above his head.</p><p>“Long day, eh?” Officer Iwaizumi mumbled, his face drawn into a severe frown as his eyes skimmed across a worn paper with wrinkled corners and messy scribbles cramped in the margins.</p><p>“A slow day,” he corrected. “I’m used to the bustle of a city, to be honest.”</p><p>That caught the other man’s attention, and he raised his head to give Daichi a cool look. “It’s not too quiet for you?”</p><p>Daichi thought about it, thought about the street violence and petty thefts he had to respond to on an hourly basis, thought about the bruises under his eyes and the way he flinched from even the gentlest of touches. No, he didn’t miss it. “Not yet,” he joked lightly, nodding farewell as he sidestepped the desk they were sharing.</p><p>He left the station with his heart just a tiny bit lighter. He could get used to this.</p><hr/><p>Sugawara woke up three minutes before his alarm. He carefully untangled their feet and rolled out of bed. His partner snuffled, shifting ever so slightly into the open space Koushi had left behind, and he chuckled under his breath at the sight. So <em> cute </em>.</p><p>Sometimes Suga resented the fact that he couldn’t officially call Daichi his husband. Semantics, they’d tell themselves, it didn’t matter what they called each other as long as they were together. But it was also in the soft, quiet moments like this that Sugawara felt like they deserved the simplest of acknowledgments other families received without a thought.</p><p>After changing into a suit and tie, Suga began to head down the stairs to start breakfast before just turning right back around, feeling such a strong desire to check it out one more time, just once more before he had to leave for work.</p><p>The door was closed, so he pushed down on the handle and followed the swinging motion inside. Beyond the teal, cushioned rocking chair, beyond the pile of toys overflowing with fuzzy, cozy heads and big button eyes, and beyond the elastic crib with tall bars, Suga pictured a tiny child, full cheeks and sparkling eyes, babbling joyously with grubby little hands reaching out for them.</p><p>Suga sniffed, his eyes stinging just a little as he blinked the image away, and he started to fold the blanket that had fallen off the rocking chair.</p><p>The room fell into darkness as he walked out. He left the door open, taking one last look before walking down the stairs.</p><p>When he arrived at the elementary school - an off-white, three-story building with a gated front and scraggly shrubs lining the sides - the first thing Suga did was head for the teacher’s lounge. Normally, he would immediately start setting up the class, double check the lesson plan, quickly skim the attendance folder… but he’d never started teaching midyear before, and there was bound to be some stuff the administrators and faculty forgot to mention.</p><p>It was nearly empty, but there was a tall young man about his age, with styled hair that curled upward in little tufts, who was staring vacantly at his phone screen as he leaned on the counter, a steaming cup of coffee waiting for him.</p><p>“Oh hello there,” Suga greeted, shuffling his bags through the doorway and smiling brightly. “I’m Sugawara Koushi.”</p><p>The man glanced up and raised both eyebrows. “Hello,” he repeated, pocketing his phone and fixing Suga with an aloof, calculating stare. “You’re the one replacing Tomi-san?”</p><p>Suga thought back to the many interviews and meetings with the administrators, and the puzzle pieces he’d had to fit together — something really bad had happened with the old teacher, and the school had been in a desperate scramble to find substitute teachers and other faculty to cover the class before Suga had come into the picture and lessened the burden.</p><p>“Yes,” he said, firmly. Whatever had happened with Tomi-sensei wasn’t his business, but he wasn’t going to let his predecessor’s tainted reputation follow him around like a rotten stank. </p><p>“Hmm,” the other teacher said, glancing at the doorway before his sharp eyes landed back on him. “I’m Oikawa Tooru, I teach on the second floor.”</p><p>Suga released a small breath, smiling back. “Nice to meet you. I used to work in Miyagi as an elementary school teacher, but I know every school is different. Any tips?”</p><p>Oikawa blinked, caught off guard (by what, Suga didn’t know), and said, a bit awkwardly, “We have a schoolwide assembly every Monday morning?”</p><p>That was actually helpful. In his old school, the students merely attended homeroom for the early morning announcements. </p><p>He smiled again, and aimed to squeeze out a few more tips from Oikawa-kun, but his eye caught the clock in the corner of the room and his heart rate immediately spiked. He hadn’t set up his classroom yet! He grimaced, nodding, and Oikawa politely nodded back.</p><p>“Thank you!” Suga said on his way out, dodging an older man with greying hair and a bristly mustache as he speed-walked down the hallway. Suddenly, he turned and called back, “Let’s eat lunch together! See you then!”</p><p>Oikawa’s face went slack in surprise, and Suga turned around with a private smile. </p><p>The lessons with the little ones started off pretty well, if he did say so himself. The children were loud and rambunctious and confused with the concept of having a more permanent sensei, but Suga managed all the questions with a learned patience. </p><p>He began with a fun “get to know you” trivia that created high shrieks of laughter and big smiles on the cute, chubby faces, and Suga felt his heart yearn even stronger.</p><p>When lunch came around, after Suga dropped off some of the children at the cafeteria, he immediately made his way to the faculty room, hoping Oikawa-kun would honor his request.</p><p>The open room was filled with a few familiar teachers he had passed in the hallway in the morning, mostly older than him by at least ten years. He carefully scanned the tables, muted conversations taking place, but Oikawa wasn’t there.</p><p>Trying not to feel disappointed, Suga headed over to a rounded table with three people and two open chairs. </p><p>“Hello, I’m Sugawara Koushi, I just started today,” he introduced when there was a natural pause in the group’s conversation. They smiled up at him and welcomed him with open arms, kindly patting at the free spot.</p><p>Suga quietly ate his rice as they gossiped about their students with fond looks and exasperated eyerolls. A few questions were sent his way, asking about his previous job, where he lived, if he had kids of his own.</p><p>It was when he was explaining the adoption process to them that Oikawa appeared in the doorway, his face a mask of indifference, eyes wintry cold. Suga faltered mid-sentence, and one of the older teachers caught it, following the look. Oikawa was gone by the time he finished explaining.</p><p>A hand caught his arm as he tried to stand up, and he stared back, confused.</p><p>“You don’t want to talk with him,” the man said, low to not be overheard by the other tables.</p><p>“He’s <em> weird </em>,” another teacher stage-whispered, leaning on the table to glare at the empty doorway. </p><p>“Surely—” Suga started to say before being cut off.</p><p>“It’s <em> sick </em> is what it is.”</p><p>“Abnormal,” the other woman amended before facing him, her lips pursed, “He says he’s dated women, so why is he with a man? Doesn’t he want to have a normal marriage, a normal family?”</p><p>“What will happen to childbirths if—?”</p><p>“—not to mention how anyone trusts him with their children? Haven’t you heard of what those perverts do to kids?”</p><p>Suga's breath hitched, his face paling bone-white, and the chopstick in his hand wouldn’t stop trembling. He dropped it on the table with a clatter, pushing his chair back with an awkward cough.</p><p>The paths lay before him. Should he speak out? Correct the misunderstandings and hope they were open to someone different? Or would he end up being hurt again? </p><p>(Gasping on the side of the road, his hands sticky with blood and vision spinning violently?)</p><p>“I’m.. I’m sorry, please excuse me,” he said, like a coward, and fled the room, <em>like a</em> <em>coward</em>.</p><p>If Daichi were here, he’d make them apologize, make them feel guilty for their harsh misconceptions. But he wasn’t here, it was just Suga, and he didn’t know how to be as commanding as his partner.</p><p>He nearly ran into someone as he quickly turned the corner, leaving the cruel words behind him, muted and gravely in his head, cutting into him even still.</p><p>“I’m so sorry- wait, Oikawa-kun?”</p><p>The young man had a hand braced on the wall, his head bowed. Suga wondered, his mind racing… how should he approach this? Oikawa had obviously been listening to them talk…</p><p>“I’m gay,” Suga blurted out, his mouth faster than his brain. His face <em> burned</em>. “I mean, I have a boyfriend.”</p><p>Oikawa raised his head, his eyes flicking back and forth, and then the tenseness melted away, like he had been in too much direct sunlight for too long. “Ah, me too,” he admitted quietly, his expression somewhere far away. </p><p>“Oh that’s lovely,” Suga exclaimed, starting to walk down the hallway. He didn’t want to risk talking with the other faculty again today, “I’d love to meet him sometime. You should come by—”</p><p>“Humph.”</p><p>It echoed, like the abstract beginnings of a long lost memory, and Suga jumped, spinning to find the source. An elderly man in a suit, hunching, had just turned a corner.</p><p>“They’re a bunch of old hags, don’t pay them any mind, Refreshing-kun,” Oikawa hummed cheerfully, his happy mood an abrupt contrast from earlier.</p><p>“You seem, wait, <em> Refreshing-kun</em>?”</p><p>Oikawa laughed, dancing away from the jab to his ribs with athletic instincts. “This year is going to be fun!” he declared, throwing his hands in the air.</p><p>Suga grinned. “That better be a promise!”</p><p>It was more than a promise, it was <em> prophetic</em>. </p><p>The school day had ended on a good note, children running screaming and only three scraped knees after playtime. When he’d arrived home, he had put their pile of mail on the kitchen table as he instead fluffed around the kitchen for something a little more sweet than a banana and protein bar. </p><p>There was a chocolate chip muffin hidden inside an opaque plastic container, and Suga hoped Daichi had forgotten about it. He was nearly done finishing off his partner’s pastry when an envelope, smaller and boxier than the other paper advertisements and bills, caught his eye.</p><p>
  <em> Child Guide Centers. </em>
</p><p>He tore it open and devoured the words.</p><p>It was pure agony waiting for his partner to finish work.</p><p>“How was your day?” was the first thing Daichi said from the front door, hearing the rhythmic sound of Suga pacing back and forth. It could be either a really good or really bad day. He finished hanging up his jacket, stepping into the kitchen with a loving smile.</p><p>“Daichi, Daichi,” Suga called, rushing towards him, clutching a folded paper in his fingers. His hands were shaking, and Daichi quickly rested his hand on top, rubbing the cool skin with the pads of his thumb. He searched Suga's face for any signs of distress - and found pure joy instead.</p><p>“What is it?”</p><p>Suga smiled, tears in the corner of his hazel eyes, “We’re getting our child!”</p><p>They crowded over the paper together, giddy and breathless.</p><p>Suga read aloud:<em> “Tobio, age 1.5 needs a new family.” </em></p><p><em> “He has a troubled background and needs love and a stable environment, </em>” Daichi took over, shifting around Suga, a grin in his voice.</p><p>
  <em> “If you choose to accept, he can come at the end of the week.” </em>
</p><p>Sugawara immediately turned to Daichi, pulling him close and squishing the official letter between them, “We’re getting our child,” he repeated, awestruck.</p><p>Daichi seared his mouth with a kiss that tasted like fireworks exploding new colors across an inky black sky. They separated, breathing deeply, and Suga hugged him even tighter. </p><p>
  <em> They were going to be parents. </em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The big question is how to fit in all my gay ships when homophobia is such a major aspect of this story haha. Hope you all liked the premise, the story should hopefully pick up once we meet our 3rd main character (cough Tobio cough) next chapter. Thanks for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Welcome, Baby (???) Tobio</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Friday couldn’t come quick enough. As both Daichi and Suga passed the time — mini moments of Suga splitting a cupcake with Oikawa, blowing out the single candle with uncontained enthusiasm; of Daichi receiving a courtly nod from Chief Inspector Ushijima, a man of few words anyway, and a surprised, tight-lipped smile from Officer Iwaizumi — the days quietly turned into nights with growing anticipation for the end of the week.</p><p>Suga had just finished stuffing the kids’ homework assignments into a folder, relishing in the quiet brought only by the end of a school day, when Oikawa emerged at the doorway, a big grin on his face.</p><p>“You’re going to be checking your phone all day today, aren’t you?” he chuckled, coming inside to poke Suga’s shoulder.</p><p>He waved a hand at him, but then had to admit, a bit sheepishly, “Yeah probably.”</p><p>He couldn’t help it, though. It was Friday, which meant social services were going to call about their baby Tobio. The empty room across from their bedroom was finally going to be filled with a tiny, adorable face, a messy litter of toys organized chaotically, and of course a few sleepless nights on the rocking chair; but it would all be worth it. They were finally going to be parents!</p><p>“Congrats,” Oikawa said again, his smile relaxing into something more delicate. “You’ll be great.”</p><p>Sugawara beamed, setting his bag on his desk. His chest felt tight and strangled, but in a good way, like he was having a hard time keeping a lid on all of the good feelings bubbling out of him. “You have to come by and meet him,” he invited wholeheartedly, “and you can bring your boyfriend too.”</p><p>Oikawa’s expression hiccuped, his smile faltering for less than a second, but then he was nodding energetically, saying, “Yeah of course! I’d love to finally meet your partner and little Tobio-chan. He’ll probably be fat,” he added a little less generously, and Sugawara frowned on behalf of his baby.</p><p>“He won’t be fat,” Suga denied, just for the fun of it.</p><p>They traded more lighthearted jokes as they walked out of the building, bumping shoulders. He had only known Oikawa-kun for a week, but the other man was quickly becoming one of his best friends. The older teachers had been giving them both a wide berth, whispering to each other behind closed hands, but Sugawara tried to not pay them any mind.</p><p>“See you later,” he called as they separated at the bus station.</p><p>“Good luck,” Oikawa shouted back, pulling up twin peace signs and blowing a kiss. “Give fat Tobio-chan a kiss for me!”</p><p>“Not fat!” Suga returned, giggling, stuffing his phone in his pocket.</p><p>Soon! So soon!</p><p>There were a few neighbors out gardening, pulling weeds and readying for spring blossoms, and Sugawara heartily greeted them as he walked through the suburban streets. This was going to be their baby’s neighborhood by the end of the day.</p><p>Across the road, a tabby cat casually meandered around the low-heighted walls and gates. It paused on the edge, staring back at him with sunny-green eyes, before nimbly jumping down and disappearing inside a leafy shrub to harass the bird population.</p><p>When Suga arrived at his house, the first thing he noticed was that the squared letterbox that was normally nailed to the side of the frame of the gate was lying bent on the ground, like someone had torn it off with a force. Or... maybe a stray cat had overestimated a jump, and dislodged it accidentally. Holding the box under his arm, Suga opened the gate and surveyed their small patch of lawn.</p><p>The newly planted violets caught his eye, and he hesitated, crouching down to examine the young growth. The flowers were just starting to bloom, but instead of creamy purple tones open to the sun, the petals were limp and bending helplessly toward the ground. </p><p>Suga straightened, glancing surreptitiously at the neighbor's garden. On the other side of the wall, azalea bushes were neatly trimmed, the leaves a vibrantly healthy green among the little round heads of flushed pink buds. </p><p>He eyed their faded and sad violets again, chewing on the inside of his cheek. Maybe they should hire a gardener? Neither of them knew much about plants, to be honest.</p><p>Ah, well, they had time for that later.</p><p>He left the letterbox and his phone, screen up, on the kitchen table as he waited for the kettle to finish boiling, humming a catchy lullaby he had heard on tv once or twice before.</p><p>The doorbell interrupted his third attempt at the chorus, and he brought his steaming cup of tea with him to answer the door.</p><p>A skinny teenager, nearly as tall as him, was glaring off to the side. Suga followed his gaze and watched as the stray cat, with the banded black stripes and bright eyes, hissed warningly, tail swishing back and forth as it hunched low on the border wall. At the sound of the door opening, the dark haired boy turned his frightening scowl his way, and Suga finally noticed the paper in his hand, crumpled by tight fingers.</p><p>“Oh, is this about the mailbox?” Suga asked gently, adopting his work-voice and trying to appear non-threatening. “I can take it, sorry about that.”</p><p>“Uh,” the boy said, giving him the paper with little resistance. He continued to stare, though, and Suga faltered on his way to close the door.</p><p>He took a closer look at the teen, then. There was a lime-green band-aid on the boy’s chin, and his hands, now free from the advertisement, were rigidly clutching at his ocean-blue backpack strap. He stared back a second longer before ducking his head, his scruffy bangs shadowing his eyes.</p><p>Suga’s smile wavered, and he eyed the inside of his house. Daichi would be back soon, and it probably couldn’t hurt to offer the boy some sweets and tea before sending him on his way. He looked like he needed some food anyway.</p><p>“Do you want to come in?” Suga finally asked, a bit hesitantly. The boy’s black scowl only deepened, so Suga scrambled to add, “there’s tea and cookies, I think? And you can give me your sales pitch while you rest your feet.”</p><p>The boy’s eyebrows scrunched together, making his face even scarier, but then he scoffed and wordlessly followed Suga inside.</p><p>He wasn’t a very good salesperson, Suga had to admit.</p><p>He set his cup of tea and the paper on the kitchen counter as he rummaged around for Daichi’s sugar stash. It was hidden behind a box of crackers and a few bags of soybeans today. Sugawara pulled out some milk cookies and then also a bag of gummies for good measure.</p><p>“Help yourself,” he told the teenager, setting the food on the table in front of him. He leaned against the opposite counter, the kettle providing a quiet but high-pitched hum in the background as it heated up.</p><p>The boy pulled his attention away from examining the room — pale green walls, four chairs circling the table, one occupied by a plastic booster seat, a few mushy-looking photos on the far cabinet —  to glower at the candy or table, Suga couldn’t tell. His bag rested on his lap, caged protectively under his crossed arms.</p><p>“So…” Suga started, “I suppose we can start with the basics. What’s your name?”</p><p>“Kageyama,” he said flatly, his shoulders hunching, “Tobio.”</p><p>Oh.. that was.. Unusual. Tobio wasn’t really a common Japanese name, and what were the chances he’d meet another Tobio the day they were supposed to get their baby?</p><p>Kageyama stared back, his head tilting a little to the side, and then he said, a bit too forcefully, “You knew I was coming, didn’t you?”</p><p>The kettle suddenly whistled deafeningly loud, and Suga jumped, scrambling to turn off the element and pour the teen his cup of green tea. With his back to Kageyama, Suga took a quick moment to consider… everything. </p><p>He smiled brightly as he set the hot cup on the table, barely looking at the teenager, before speed-walking to where he’d set his own cup and the letter down.</p><p>“Excuse me for a moment, please,” he said pleasantly, and then spun on his heels, rushing around the corner of the room, bracing against the wall as he unfolded the wrinkled paper.</p><p>Kageyama frowned, sighing through his nose and pulling his bag closer to his chest. He ran a hand over his face, scrubbing.</p><p>Suga’s hands trembled as he read.</p><hr/><p>“Has social services called yet?” Daichi inquired as he walked through the entryway, late afternoon sunlight streaming in after him. He toed off his shoes as he covered a yawn, calling a bit louder when there was no answer, “Koushi?”</p><p>“Daichi,” Suga hissed, suddenly appearing in front of him just as he was hanging up his jacket. Daichi startled back a step, his heart jumping in his throat, and then he chuckled embarrassedly at his reaction. Suga didn’t join in, though, and Daichi felt his initial fear return ten-fold. </p><p>“What’s wrong?” he asked, lowering his voice and taking in everything around him with calm analysis.</p><p>Koushi’s face was pale, his lips wobbling, a paper gripped mercilessly in one hand. There was also a hushed sound of crackling coming from the kitchen (someone eating food?) and Daichi finally noticed another pair of shoes (athletic-shaped but rough, scuffed and dirty) facing the doorway. </p><p>“We have a visitor?” he confirmed, shuffling forward, and Suga followed after him, staying close. Was their guest the threat? He peaked around the corner, and luckily the stranger didn’t seem to notice.</p><p>It was a young man. He was thin, with long, messy black hair that obscured half his face as he nibbled on the tip of a milk cookie. A school bag was tucked against his body, held possessively close, and his shirt was a size too short, the long sleeves stopping only a few inches past his elbows.</p><p>“Are those mine?” Daichi whispered, betrayed, as the teenager slowly reached for another one, glancing around surreptitiously. </p><p>“<em>Not the point here, Daichi </em>,” Suga whispered back harshly. He gave him another moment and then pulled back, lugging him towards the front door for some relative privacy.</p><p>“Why is a teenager eating my cookies?”</p><p>“His name is Kageyama,” Suga interrupted, “Tobio.” He crossed his arms and waited.</p><p>It didn’t take long. Suga silently passed the paper over to him, and his eyes scanned it carefully, taking everything in.</p><p>“Social services must have sent us the wrong Tobio,” Suga stated, but his voice lilted at the end, confused and worried, “right?”</p><p>Daichi re-read the letter one more time. It certainly looked official, reading like a formal bureaucratic document. “I don’t know,” he said softly, before raising his head and nodding resolutely, “but we should find out.”</p><p>Taking the lead, Daichi slipped around his partner and headed, single-mindedly, into the kitchen. Kageyama raised his head at the sudden motion, and Daichi got a good look at his eyes (sky-blue, narrowed in a perpetual glare) and the faded green-yellow of an old bruise on his collarbone, just barely visible above the boy’s jacket.</p><p>“Hel—” Daichi began, his tone forcibly casual and patient, but Kageyama didn’t give him the chance to finish. As soon as his eyes caught on Daichi’s royal blue uniform, he bolted out of the chair —only to trip from the too-fast motion and land on his hip with a painful smack. His backpack skittered across the floor, sliding until it hit the wall.</p><p>Suga winced, murmuring, “ouch.”</p><p>Kageyama didn’t seem to care, his socked feet immediately scrambling for purchase. At the start of the commotion, Daichi had taken a worried step forward, and now he concernedly reached out a hand. The teenager clambered upright without taking it, pulling the vacated chair between them in a pathetic attempt at a barrier.</p><p>“I didn’t do anything!” he snarled in a rough voice, his body coiled and tense, ready to spring.</p><p>Daichi promptly took three steps backwards, raising his hands outward, like he was calming a spooked animal. Suga slowly edged around the wall, making his way to the kid’s bag.</p><p>“I’m not going to hurt you,” Daichi said plainly, and he kept his hands visible in the air. Kageyama didn’t look reassured, but he also didn’t look like he was going to try to make another run for it. Good. “Let’s just slow down here okay?”</p><p>Finally, Kageyama nodded, a simple jerk of his head that made his bangs swish. </p><p>“Okay,” Daichi said, smiling tightly. He very gradually brought a hand to his chest, “My name is Daichi.”</p><p>“I’m Koushi, but you can call me Suga,” his partner added with a calming smile, approaching the teen and then holding out his hand, offering him his backpack. </p><p>Kageyama violently grabbed it, and Daichi had to hold himself back from barking at the boy to mind himself. Not the time or place.</p><p>After a few more words were exchanged, Daichi and Suga successfully managed to get all of them sitting at the table. Kageyama refused to eat anymore cookies, no matter how much Suga tried to assure him it was fine, <em> please </em>eat as much as you’d like. His cup of tea remained full, now cold.</p><p>“There must have been a mistake,” Suga started to explain, light and slow, “We were expecting a baby, one-and-half years old. Social services were going to call.”</p><p>“Why is a cop here?” Kageyama cut in instead, looking like he was barely listening. His fingers were picking at a loose thread on his bag strap and his left foot was agitatedly tapping the floor. “I didn’t <em> do anything</em>,” he repeated.</p><p>Suga angled his chair towards his partner, and they communicated silently for a moment before Daichi turned to Kageyama and said serenely, “We’re together.”</p><p>Kageyama’s face scrunched up, and Daichi wasn’t sure he actually understood.</p><p>“Boyfriends,” Suga clarified with a small smile, reaching out and threading their hands together. Daichi gently squeezed, smiling back.</p><p>He turned back to the teenager just in time to see Kageyama’s mouth twist like he’d tasted something sour, his eyes widening before collapsing into an oppressive glare as dark as a black hole. “You’re <em> homos?</em>” he spat, shifting backwards.</p><p>“Sit down,” Daichi ordered in his officer-voice, and Kageyama flinched but obediently slumped back into the chair.</p><p>This wasn’t how either of them had wanted - or expected - the day to go. Instead of wrangling a crying baby into his crib, they were staring down an aggressive teenager with official papers straight from social services.</p><p>Suga cleared his throat, hoping his voice didn’t wobble tellingly, “They, they must have mixed up the families. We were expecting a child named Tobio, so I’m sure there’s another loving family out there wondering why they got a baby instead of you.”</p><p>Kageyama sealed his lips into a thin line, scowling down at his lap and leaning slightly away from Daichi’s chilly stare. </p><p>“How about we all take a deep breath,” Suga began, patting their joined hands with his free one and eyeing the digital kitchen clock, “and then see if we can correct this mistake. The adoption agency should still be open if we leave now.”</p><p>The group lumbered into the old, faded-red subaru parked on the side of the road. Kageyama’s face contorted at the sight of the safety seat in the back seat. A fuzzy, plush fox head poked out from the layer of small blankets, pointed ears folded against the side of the firm cushion. He glanced away, crossing his arms over his seatbelt and staring gloomily out the window.</p><p>Daichi drove, checking his rearview mirror more than was necessary, and Suga fiddled anxiously with the radio, having a hard time picking a station. He landed on instrumental jazz and they listened to the swinging harmony, soft melancholy tones dashed with bubbles of high, sweet notes.</p><p>They arrived ten minutes before the agency was going to close, and Daichi hurried them out of the car, letting Suga take the lead so he could bring up the rear. The teenager curled in on himself as he walked between them, his shoulder up his ears and hands stuffed deep into the recesses of his pockets. </p><p>The lobby was a wide area, a border of chairs forming two circles, one around a coffee table and the other around a multipurpose toy grounded on the rug. Colorful bobbles arched up and around thin yellow cables, and on one side of the hexagonal plaything, parallel zig-zags were cut out from the wood for a child to dutifully follow with her hands. The group bypassed the sitting area and headed straight for the reception desk. </p><p>Daichi and Sugawara stepped forward, holding hands, and the receptionist peered up at them, no one else inside the lobby. Kageyama loitered from the back a few steps away, scuffing a foot at the rug.</p><p>“There’s been a mistake,” Daichi spoke sedately, and the man’s eyes flickered over his blue police outfit. He smiled apologetically, scratching the back of his neck. He had completely forgotten to put a jacket over his uniform in the rush to leave. He bulldozed ahead, passing the wary worker the official document, “or a mix up of some sorts.”</p><p>The man took it, and Daichi glanced over his shoulder to make sure Kageyama wasn’t getting into trouble. The teenager immediately turned his angry stare to the floor. Suga whispered, hushed, “be nice.”</p><p>Daichi looked back when the man made a noise of confusion. “I’ll need to speak to the case manager, but he won’t be back until Monday. One moment,” he said, turning away and pressing a few buttons on a sleek printer resting against the far wall. It hummed to life, shaking the bobble-head on the desk, and then one smooth piece of paper was sliding free. With deft fingers, the worker passed the document over to them.</p><p>“This is Kageyama Tobio’s background check and history,” he said as his fingers tapped the keyboard, his eyes sweeping across the screen. “I’ll set you all up for an appointment Monday morning.”</p><p>Daichi scanned the paper rapidly, picking up words like criminal and theft and assault, and he felt his facial muscles tighten.</p><p>They just wanted a <em> baby </em>. Was that too much to ask?</p><p>“Daichi,” Suga muttered, shaking his shoulder, and he raised his head to see them both staring at him carefully.</p><p>“Is eight o’clock okay?” the man asked, for presumably a second time.</p><p>“Oh,” Daichi said, seeing Suga nod from the corner of his eye, “Uh, yes, thank you.”</p><p>“Wonderful,” the worker said, dragging the computer mouse around and clicking three times. “You’re all set. Have a lovely weekend.”</p><p>Kageyama made a rude sound in the back of his throat, and before Daichi or Suga could react, he stormed outside with a stomp of dirty shoes.</p><p>Daichi and Suga shared a look. This was going to be a <em> long </em>weekend.</p><hr/><p>They situated Kageyama on the couch in the living room, letting the boy watch television if he so desired (he didn’t, instead staring out the dark window, folded up with his knees to his chest). Suga read the teen’s history one more time, slightly disbelieving, as Daichi stress-ate his gummy candies. They were huddled together in the kitchen, waiting for the miso soup to finish warming up.</p><p>
  <em> “Tobio Kageyama, 15 years old. Mother: five years probation; father: five years probation. Legal guardian, Miwa Kageyama: deceased.” </em>
</p><p>Suga always made a sad noise when he read that part, and Daichi frowned. “Keep reading,” he pressed, even though they’d already re-read the same paragraph three times already.</p><p>
  <em> “Tobio has committed numerous crimes: minor theft, concealing a knife on his person, aggravated assault…” </em>
</p><p>The kitchen fell into silence again. Suga opened his mouth and then closed it again, pursing his lips. Daichi sighed loudly, dropping into a chair and holding his head in his hands. </p><p>“Can we do this? An entire weekend with… him?”</p><p>Sugawara rubbed a soothing hand over his partner’s back. “He’s just a child, Daichi,” he said matter-of-factly, “and it’ll only be two days.”</p><p>Dinner was tense. Kageyama refused to eat, instead staring unblinkingly at them. It was more than a little unnerving.</p><p>“Um, good soup,” Koushi tried, attempting a weak smile. It fell halfway, and the teenager glowered harder. Suga didn’t think he’d seen the kid make an expression that wasn’t fixed in unpleasantness yet.</p><p>“Thanks.”</p><p>As Daichi cleared the table, picking up Kageyama’s untouched bowl too, Suga pushed his chair back and reached out a hand for the teen’s shoulder. His partner was an elementary school teacher, he dealt with difficult moods all the time.</p><p>The boy fiercely dodged the contact and shouted, like a rapid animal, “Don’t <em> touch me </em>. Fucking pillow-biter.”</p><p>Daichi slammed the bowls into the sink and spun around, his expression shadowed, and Kageyama’s face turned bloodless, a small noise escaping as he froze in place, like he was barely breathing. Suga quickly intercepted him.</p><p>“I’m <em> fine </em>,” he said, and his big hazel eyes spoke volumes. Daichi released the breath that had caught, strangled, in his lungs. “Finish the dishes, Daichi, and I’ll show Kageyama-kun to his room for the night.”</p><p>“Um,” the teen said, his head bowed, and he followed after Suga without saying anything else.</p><p>“Shit,” Daichi whispered brokenly, clutching the soapy sponge with both hands. His eyes burned. “<em> Shit </em>.”</p><p>Upstairs, Sugawara was setting out a spare futon as Kageyama awkwardly stood in the corner of the room, next to the crib. He had to duck his head to avoid the spinning baby mobile visualizing the planets in the solar system in all their unusual sizes and colors.</p><p>“This will be your room for now,” Suga needlessly explained, trying to fill the suffocating silence. “If you need anything, just let me or Daichi know.”</p><p>“Uh.”</p><p>Suga turned around hopefully, his hand pausing on the handle. “Thanks,” the teen said quietly, avoiding eye contact, gripping at his backpack strap again.</p><p>His heart lightened, just a bit. “You’re welcome.”</p><p>He closed the door with a gentle click and headed downstairs. Daichi was moving furniture around when he walked through the open doorway, setting up for… something.</p><p>“I’m sleeping on the couch,” he said and Suga faltered, confused and a bit hurt, “What?”</p><p>Daichi turned at the sound, obviously hearing the pain in his voice, and his face immediately softened. “Oh <em> Koushi </em>, I didn’t mean it like that. I don’t trust the boy, I’m taking watch.”</p><p>“I don’t think—”</p><p>“Please,” Daichi said, imploring. He rested a palm against his partner’s cheek, his thumb rubbing tender circles on Suga’s skin. </p><p>Suga hesitated and then nodded, reaching up a hand to hold Daichi. “Okay, okay,” he breathed, “but at least try and get some sleep.”</p><p>“I’ll try.”</p><p>In the baby’s room, Kageyama Tobio was leaning against the door, his long legs pulled close, a fluffy pink blanket wrinkled tightly between his fists. </p><p>The world darkened around them.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Whoa, I wrote this in like a day, I’m proud of myself. I don’t have a schedule cause I basically write whenever and then post it as soon as I finish ‘cause I need immediate attention haha. But everything is planned out, so… just a matter of time (and work), I guess. Thanks for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. A Rough Start</h2></a>
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    <p>The house was dark and quiet. </p><p>Kageyama discreetly opened the bedroom door, his bag held close to his side as he breathed very mindfully through his mouth and not his nose. He had changed into the warmest jacket he had, with too-big sleeves that poofed out around him, colored in the dark grey hues of the night.</p><p>Silver-blue rays glowed from the skylight above, and it offered just enough light for Kageyama to carefully make his way down the stairs. He stuck to the perimeter of the floorboards, keeping his back to the wall and eyes facing the open living room as he crouched down, holding his bag on his knees as he shifted down each step.</p><p>There was always a give-and-take. By sitting, he minimized the creaks and moans of agitated wood, settling his weight more evenly. But it also meant that if one of them saw him, he had to be <em> fast</em>, because time was limited and standing up was adding another step to the long list of necessary actions.</p><p>Minutes later, Kageyama’s socks finally made contact with the ground floor. He straightened quickly, leaning partial weight on the side of the wall, and gathered his backpack in front of him.</p><p>The house remained settled, the world motionless in a way it never was during daylight.</p><p>As he moved, meticulous and deliberate, he took a careful moment to look back at the staircase. No shadowy figures loomed above him, silhouetted, inky and black. So why did his heart skip a beat, loud in his ears; why was his skin prickling like there were small insects crawling all over him, biting and chewing at his sensitive skin? Stepping further into the living room, Kageyama found a bowl gently curved to hold spare change, and he promptly pocketed the coins without guilt.</p><p>It was making his way out the front door that was going to be a problem. The police officer had settled comfortably on the couch, his mouth open as he sniffled. His eyes were closed, chest rising, deep and slow. Kageyama glanced over the couch, to the backdoor, but it was too far, and he’d have to angle past the cop. </p><p>He’d just be very quiet.</p><p>At every out-of-place noise, Kageyama would freeze and crane his neck to triple-check the cop was still asleep. He unlocked the door and winced at the popping click.</p><p>The officer slept on.</p><p>Kageyama slid through the crack, pulling his school bag through next. As he nearly finished shutting the door he thought he heard a murmur, soft and far away, but then the door was shut tight and he was alone outside in the cool spring air.</p><p>He made it as far as three steps before jumping out of his skin, clasping both hands over his mouth to smother the scared mewling sound that had come from low in his throat. He folded, trying to remember how to breathe again. Yellow-green eyes blazed bright in the blackness, like two tiny torchlights, mere inches from the ground.</p><p>“Hi,” he breathed out, tentatively reaching out a hand. His fingers were shaking uncontrollably, and he frowned. The cat hissed, stretching its front legs and flicking its tail.</p><p>Kageyama pulled back, a heavy weight pressing on him, so he chewed on his bottom lip instead. He readjusted his bag strap and padded through the garden, the dirt soft and mushy, and his shoes sank a bit with each step. The front gate squeaked when he unlocked it, but he was far enough from the house it shouldn't matter.</p><p>There was a loud rustling to his left, and Kageyama turned just in time to see the tabby cat, shadowed in muted grey colors, jump off the border wall and leisurely cross the street.</p><p>“Hey,” someone said to his right, in a normal, conversational tone, and Kageyama yelped, startling backwards and nearly falling over. He scrambled around for a weapon, but there were only fragile flowers and heavy potted plants around him. </p><p>“Shit,” a man said — adult, middle-aged, strong-sounding — and Kageyama gripped his bag with both hands. It wasn’t very heavy, but it was all he had.</p><p>“That was dumb,” the man said, shaking his head, and he walked a step closer. “I don’t know why I did that.”</p><p>Now that Kageyama could hear him over his heart’s pounding drum symphony, he recognized the dark outline and voice.</p><p>“The cop,” he realized aloud, feeling something inside him, maybe his heart, crash and burn. <em> Damn it. </em></p><p>“Uh, yeah,” the man — Daichi? — said, and his silhouette rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry for scaring you.”</p><p>Kageyama didn’t say anything, but he did raise his head, surprised by the apology.</p><p>Daichi sighed heavily and his voice adopted a soft, somber quality, “I might not be too happy with you right now, but I also can’t just let you run away. It’s not safe out there. Please come back inside and just wait out the two days with us.”</p><p>“So you can rape me?” Kageyama asked boldly, not moving. He spoke over the man’s spluttered and outraged “<em>what</em>??” to say, “I know what homos do to kids, <em> and I won’t let you</em>.”</p><p>“What, <em>no</em>,” Daichi said, forcefully, raising his hands, and Kageyama couldn’t see his face in the dim light, but it probably looked horrified too. “<em>No</em>,” he said again, “I’m not— <em>we’re </em>not, going to touch you. Not like— never like— like <em>that</em>.”</p><p>Kageyama narrowed his eyes. Miwa always said he was bad at reading people and social cues, but the man seemed genuinely distressed by the idea. That didn’t mean Kageyama trusted him, though. He’d just sleep with his back to the doorframe.</p><p>The cop was right, it was only two days. Afterall, he’d managed years; he could handle a weekend.</p><p>Kageyama took the lead, walking back into the house, and Daichi locked the door behind them. He had a foot on the first step when the cop muttered quietly, “Wait, hold on, just wait one moment okay? ...Here.”</p><p>The teenager immediately tensed, but Daichi only continued to hold out his hand, a plastic-wrapped protein bar in his palm.</p><p>His stomach grumbled pointedly at the sight. He took it slowly, watching the cop’s face the entire time.</p><p>“Um,” he said, when the officer had turned around and started to head back to the couch. He didn’t wait for him to turn back around, mumbling quickly, “thank you for the food.”</p><p>And then he took the stairs two steps at a time, disappearing into the baby’s room. </p><p>The house breathed out.</p><p>Suga silently appeared at the top of the stairs, eyeing the door that had just been closed with a troubled frown. His silver hair was mused, sticking up messily, but his eyes were sharp and awake. Daichi nodded back, just as silent.</p><p>No one got much sleep that night.</p><hr/><p>Saturday morning started off overcast and gloomy. It was drizzling on-and-off, creating a misty, ashen film over the beginning buds of color. Their violets looked even worse today, wilted and drooping low from the weight of the rain droplets.</p><p>Suga slushed the water off his umbrella before coming inside, scuffing his rainboots against the welcome mat. He peered up the empty stairway before heading into the kitchen, humming lightly.</p><p>His partner was checking his phone, flicking through the local news as a cup of coffee filled the room with its smoky and burnt aroma.</p><p>“Do you think Kageyama will want some tea?” Suga wondered, picking out his favorite flavor and enjoying the spicy, cinnamony aftertaste. </p><p>Daichi looked up, resting his phone on the table. He thought about it curiously before answering, “You know, he seemed to really enjoy my milk cookies.”</p><p>Suga said, warningly, “You can’t still be mad about that.”</p><p>Daichi tilted his head, but his lips were quivering tellingly as he tried to suppress his smile. “And my chocolate chip muffin is gone too.”</p><p>“I wonder how that happened,” Suga said innocently, taking another sip of his tea and peacefully staring back.</p><p>Daichi snorted, giving in as he smiled boyishly, laughing at the way his partner grinned impishly. “Lying to a cop is a certifiable offense,” he cautioned, trying to maintain a serious demeanor. </p><p>“Oh dear, here come the dad jokes.”</p><p>He choked on his coffee, offended, and Sugawara rudely snickered at him.</p><p>“But to answer your <em> question</em>,” he said instead, “I think the kid would rather have hot chocolate or something. Or just plain milk maybe.”</p><p>That was actually a very clever observation; he hoped it worked, because he was honestly getting a bit worried. It was nearly noon, and Kageyama already looked so thin; missing three meals in a row wasn’t good for him.</p><p>He ended up making a cup of hot chocolate, knocking on the door with the back of his hand. There was noisy shifting from nearby, and then the door was flying open, hurriedly pulled inward on squeaky hinges.</p><p>Kageyama stared, his eyes wide and blue, like a sapphire gemstone catching in the sun. But then he blinked, and Suga noticed the heavy bags under his eyes and the way his face looked pale and washed out. The green band-aid on his chin was also starting to fray, thready and worn. </p><p>He accepted the hot chocolate with a quiet thanks, warming his hands on the cup, and Suga nodded cheerfully. “What do you think about getting lunch in town? Any food you’re really craving?”</p><p>The teen averted his eyes, mumbling. </p><p>Suga chewed on his lip. “Tobio-kun?” he tried again, leaning down to try and read the boy’s expression. “May you please repeat that?”</p><p>At the request, Kageyama seemed to falter, his hands tightening on his steaming cup. He looked like he was bracing himself before he said, “Pork curry,” and then he winced, bowing his head further. “Please.”</p><p>“Sure!” Suga said sunnily, perhaps a bit too loudly given the way Kageyama startled, but it felt like he was finally making some positive headway. Breathing came a bit easier when he added, “Feel free to come downstairs anytime, and we can head out at your leisure.”</p><p>The two men were talking quietly when Kageyama finally stepped down the stairs.</p><p>Daichi was the first one to notice, and Kageyama hesitated at the entryway, swallowing hard. He thought back to last night, and wondered worriedly if the cop was telling his boyfriend about what he’d done and said.</p><p>The other man smiled, friendly, and Kageyama suspiciously narrowed his eyes, holding tight to the wall around his heart. </p><p>“Oh, hey, Kageyama-kun. Did you know that crows are one of the smartest birds in the world?”</p><p>What.</p><p>Suga rolled his eyes. “Here we go.”</p><p>Daichi ignored him. “No, no this actually happened, don’t listen to him. I was working on some paperwork in my car a few weeks ago, when I watched this crow drop a walnut right in front of a car during a red light. As you do,” he said, and Kageyama watched the silver-haired man hide his amused smile inside a cup, “but <em> then</em>, I watched the same crow pick up its cracked walnut at the next red light. They were using the cars as nutcrackers! It’s just a—”</p><p>“—Amazing?” Suga mocked good-naturedly, smiling over at Kageyama, like they were sharing an inside joke.</p><p>Kageyama nearly smiled back, and that immediately scared him. He couldn’t let himself get complacent. Especially not with them.</p><p>Suga didn’t seem to notice, following up with, “So what do you think about walking around Osaka Castle Park after we eat? We haven’t been before, and I heard it’s nice.”</p><p>“I don’t care,” Kageyama said gruffly, not sure what to do with this new, airy dynamic. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, uncomfortable.</p><p>The two men didn’t look phased by his bluntness either, and that was odd too. </p><p>They smoothly packed into the car just as the sun started to emerge, glittering beams of light poking holes through fading, grey clouds. The air tasted fresh on their tongues.</p><hr/><p>Suga ordered super spicy mapo tofu.</p><p>Daichi ordered shoyu ramen. </p><p>Kageyama ordered pork curry with an egg on top.</p><p>They all glanced at each other judgmentally when the food arrived. But both Daichi and Kageyama had to call a truce and agree that Sugawara’s was the worst of them all. The spicy dish was a deep, creamy red with chopped green onions sprinkled over a layer of firm tofu squares. On the menu, it was the only one that had filled all five of the hot pepper symbols.</p><p>“It’s good,” Suga defended, blowing on his spoonful. Daichi and Kageyama watched him carefully. He took a bite with a small hum of pleasure and winked back.</p><p>“Is that <em> really </em>your favorite food?” Kageyama asked skeptically, his hands in his lap, and he leaned forward attentively, a small almost-smile playing at the corner of his mouth. “How can you actually eat that?”</p><p>“I mean,” Suga answered thoughtfully around another mouthful, “it does burn at first, but there’s a really flavorful aftertaste, so it’s worth the initial kick.” He made a show of swallowing it full, without the rice.</p><p>Kageyama didn’t look convinced. Daichi shook his head, murmuring under his breath about crazy people.</p><p>“Want some?” the teacher offered liberally. Kageyama carefully deliberated before declining, looking back at his own favorite food.</p><p>The curry was a luscious brown, halved with rice and a tender, soft-boiled egg. The last time he’d had this dish, Miwa was trying to cheer him up. They’d played volleyball in the park hours after the sun had set.</p><p>The memories came hard and fast, and it was suddenly that much harder to breathe.</p><p>“How’s your dish?” Suga asked Daichi, loudly, and a few customers sitting on the bar stools near the counter glanced over their shoulder, whispering amongst each other.</p><p>Kageyama looked up to see Daichi quickly shifting his eyes down to his own dish, and he casually poked the ramen noodles with a chopstick. “Simple and <em> delicious</em>,” he stressed, obviously still upset over his partner calling his food boring.</p><p>The world unmuted around him, no longer muffled and flat, like water rushing into a sudden vacuum and filling his ears with nearby sounds. One of the people sitting across from them, a large man in an ill-fitted suit, said something low, and a girl with piercings in her ears and nose laughed enthusiastically. </p><p>...Were they talking about them? Did they know he was staying with homos? Did they think he was one too?</p><p>Kageyama couldn’t believe he’d almost been lulled into thinking this was a normal lunch. <em> Nothing </em>about this was normal.</p><p>His food tasted like charcoal as he scarfed it down, and he missed the concerned looks Daichi and Suga shared over his head.</p><hr/><p>Osaka Castle Park was very, very busy. Crowded tour buses full of people ambled along the pedestrian lanes, loud and hectic. There were high school girls in ruffled skirts posing for a group photo, an older family of five talking animatedly in English as they pointed at the distant castle’s golden roof poking above pale-pink sakura trees, and a man trying to quell a crying baby by making exaggerated faces. The three of them followed the flow of heavy foot traffic, sticking close together against the hustle and bustle of the other tourists.</p><p>Following the path, they briefly admired a water fountain glistening in the warm sun and gentle breeze before heading down a less crowded road marked by early cherry blossoms dusting the branches in faded coral blooms. Suga and Daichi made casual conversation while Kageyama frowned, quiet, and kept a steady pace next to the couple, his hands in his pockets.</p><p>At one point, Suga and Daichi had started holding hands, swinging their arms together and affectionately smiling into each other’s eyes. It was mushy and gross, and Kageyama looked away to stare moodily at the trees.</p><p>When they arrived at the outer moat surrounding the castle, Suga took the time to take a few photos of the lively landscape while Daichi read a historical marker. </p><p>A pre-teen in a big hoodie sitting with his brother on the stairs caught his eye, and Kageyama felt himself frown back. The other made a show of looking him up and down, and their smirks looked.. cruel.</p><p>“Hey, shirtlifters!” one the boys shouted crudely with a disgusted sneer, and a few people glanced over at the sound. Whispers broke out over the crowd of Japanese-speaking tourists, and a few families hurriedly ushered their children along, giving each other sidelong glances.</p><p>“Poofters!” the other pre-teen yelled gleefully, making an obscene gesture with his hands and mouth. </p><p>Kageyama frowned, slouching down, and looked over his shoulder to see how the two men were going to respond.</p><p>Suga’s face was blank except for the crease between his eyebrows. “Aren’t those Haya and Jun’ichi’s boys?” he asked curiously, walking closer. </p><p>“Oh, yeah,” Daichi said, his hands crossed over his chest, and he nonchalantly stalked towards the stairs. The boys straightened up, watching him approach with arrogant grins. “I think you’re right.”</p><p>“<em>Homos</em>,” the first boy jeered, but this time, it was directed at Kageyama too, and he froze in surprise at the attention. The kid spat on the ground without breaking eye contact with the older teen.</p><p>“Tobio-kun,” Sugawara warned suddenly, and Daichi frowned, looking over at him.</p><p>Kageyama took off without a word and the boys scattered, running up the stairs and squealing dramatically, the teenager hot on their heels. Other pedestrians jumped out of their way, surprised and confused by the sight of a furious teenager chasing two young boys, shouting fearfully, through the park.</p><p>“Shit,” Daichi growled before he rushed after them. Suga shuffled in place uneasily, bowing his head low and apologizing profusely to the other people for the interruption.</p><p>It took Daichi three more minutes to catch up to the teenager, but that was more than enough time for Kageyama to pull his arm back and swing a punch right between the shorter boy’s eyes. The two were crumpled on the ground together, wrestling, and Kageyama had just gained the upper hand, sitting on the other boy’s stomach and winding up for another blow.</p><p>“<em>Kageyama Tobio</em>!” Daichi barked. “Come here right now,” he commanded, wintry cold, and all three boys stilled. Kageyama turned his head, his eyes blown wide and fearful, but Daichi couldn’t care about that right now. There was a boy sobbing violently on the ground cradling a split lip and the other with a blooming black eye still being held hostage beneath his charge. “<em>Now, Kageyama</em>!”</p><p>The teenager hesitatingly walked over to him, pale, his thin fingers pulling anxiously at the bottom of his dark jacket. Under his fringe, his eyes darted around restlessly, taking in the people milling around with morbid curiosity. He didn’t dare touch the bruise starting to throb on his chin.</p><p>“Kageyama,” Daichi said, but it wasn’t loud and booming and meant for everyone to hear. The cop gripped his arm, ignoring the way the kid immediately and severely flinched, pulling them along and away from the spectators, “You can’t just— that was completely <em> unacceptable</em>. What were you <em> thinking</em>?”</p><p>Kageyama didn’t say anything, his mouth a thin line as he stared intently at the ground.</p><p>Daichi stopped near a skeletal sakura tree. It was mostly branches, with nearly no buds or leaves to beautify the area, and they were far enough from the main attractions that only two other people were in the immediate area, heading away from them and distracted by their phones.</p><p>He sighed, and kept his voice deliberately even as he tried again, “What were you thinking, Kageyama?”</p><p>The teenager remained silent, hiding his face from the other man, his fingers still obsessively picking at the threads of his jacket. Daichi took a cool look at him, at the swelling and purple-tinted bruise rapidly forming below his lips, at the way his stare was almost painfully focused on the dirt, like he was bracing himself for something really bad to happen.</p><p>“I’m sorry I yelled,” Daichi said, watching him closely. Kageyama didn’t look like he’d heard him, as still as a statue. “Alright, this is what’s going to happen. We’re going to find Suga and go home. You’re grounded for the rest of the night. Tomorrow you're going to apologize to our neighbors.”</p><p>The kid remained deathly silent, but he had also started to tremble, clenching his hands into fists, and Daichi frowned at that. Was Kageyama upset over his punishment? That didn’t seem right, either.</p><p>They headed back and met up with Suga at the parking lot.</p><p>“Oh, dear, that doesn’t look good,” he said upon seeing them. “Let’s get you some ice when we get back home.”</p><p>“He’s grounded for the night,” Daichi informed his partner as they slid into their seats. It was mostly the thought that counted though, since they both doubted Kageyama had made any plans for the night. </p><p>Kageyama curled up in the back seat, looking so small despite his impressive height, and Daichi and Suga shared a look. The ride back to the neighborhood was silent.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Kageyama: I think I could get used to this<br/>Also Kageyama: no wait</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. A Matter of Trust</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The teenager receded into his room as soon as they unlocked the front door. Suga called out after him — "We still need to ice your face, Tobio-kun! Where are you going?" — but his partner pulled him back, shaking his head.</p><p>With just the two of them, Daichi sagged into a chair, muttering under his breath. "A baby wouldn't have been this much trouble," he bemoaned, pressing the heel of his palms into his eyes.</p><p>"Do you think our Tobio-chan is doing okay?" Suga asked, leaning into his side and sighing at the easy contact. He looked over his shoulder, and wondered if their teenage Tobio was also doing okay. The injuries on his face had looked painful, puffy and red.</p><p>"I hope so," his partner finally said softly, following the other man's gaze up the stairs.</p><p>The hours passed by slowly. Daichi started making dinner, wearing a homemade apron decorated with little yellow and blue spinning volleyballs bouncing along in no real pattern. The window was open, and Suga could smell the stew all the way from their garden.</p><p>As the sun dipped low, washing the world in a brilliant orange overlay and turning puddles aglow in a purple and pink luster, Suga watered their violets, the stems languidly bending towards the soft dirt.</p><p>A cool breeze picked up when he was heading back inside, and he stared out at the dark neighborhood, shivering. Maybe tonight he should go and apologize on Tobio-kun's behalf. He really didn't want to alienate the friends they had literally <em>just </em>made. Gossip traveled at the speed of light in tight communities like this.</p><p>"Food is ready," Daichi told him after he kicked off his shoes, a single purple flower held between his fingers in a weak attempt to brighten up their table. Suga nodded and started to set the table for three people, circling around the chair with the baby booster with a slight frown.</p><p>Daichi hung up his apron in the closet and offered so Suga didn't have to, "I'll get Kageyama-kun."</p><p>As he walked up the stairs, he thought carefully about how he wanted to approach the teenager. He was still irritated at the kid, but he also wasn't sure what exactly <em>he </em>would have done, either. The neighborhood boys shouldn't get a free pass for what they said, just as Kageyama-kun shouldn't be rewarded for immediately resorting to violence. It was a thin line, and Daichi wasn't sure he was prepared to walk it.</p><p>The top of the stairs was quiet when he knocked on the door, firm and loud, and waited for Kageyama to answer him. He heard nothing: the other side of the room remained soundless and still.</p><p>...Would Kageyama have tried to run away again? There was a window in the baby's room, and even though they were on the second floor, he could easily picture a repeat of last night.</p><p>
  <em>Damn it.</em>
</p><p>"I'm coming in," he warned just in case, pausing for a moment before turning the handle and pushing against the door. It jammed, and Daichi's eyes widened.</p><p>This <em>little—</em></p><p>He bent his knees and shoved, hearing the rocking chair scrape against the floorboards in a long, ear-splitting shriek. He slipped through the open crack, his anger like a thundercloud, ozone burning through the air and leaving a crispy aftertaste.</p><p>—Only to come up short, his fury dissipating as quickly as it had come but not nearly fast enough.</p><p>The kid's white-hot terror shifted to a sort of sick satisfaction, like he'd <em>finally </em>been proven right. But he wasn't spewing vitriolic hate about homosexual perverts, he was just… blank. And Daichi... he was starting to understand.</p><p>This wasn't because he was gay, it was because he was a <em>parent</em>.</p><p>"Dinner's downstairs," Daichi said, his tongue heavy. All those flinches and fearful looks… <em>god, just everything</em>. How had he been so <em>blind</em>? A raging anger was building behind his eyes, as intense as a wildly spinning neutron star shoved out of orbit, and he was having a hard time catching his breath.</p><p>Kageyama was still holding his pajama top loosely in both hands, motionless, his eyes screwed shut and head bowed.</p><p>"Just give me one second okay," Daichi managed to say, and he turned right back around, wrangling his thoughts into some semblance of order as he leaned against the wall, his head in his hands. No matter what he'd say, the teenager wasn't going to believe he hadn't meant him any harm.</p><p>They were never going to come back from this unless Daichi gave Kageyama a little trust of his own. And he had to do it sooner rather than later.</p><p>"I'll be right back, I need to get something," Daichi shouted as he raced down the stairs, "Eat dinner without me!"</p><p>Sugawara confusedly watched the front door slam shut, rattling the frame. He looked up to the top of the stairs, expecting to see it empty or maybe a door swinging closed, but Kageyama was standing there, as quiet as a shadow, long-limbed and lanky.</p><p>"Are you okay?" he inquired charily, trying to read the teen's face and surprisingly falling short. What the hell had happened upstairs? "There's hayashi rice stew for dinner, if you want to join me?"</p><p>"No thank you," the boy said politely before disappearing back into his room.</p><p>Suga turned back to the door, almost expecting his partner to come back inside and properly explain himself. He didn't.</p><p>Alright then.</p><p>He marched into the kitchen, ignoring his own food to fill an empty plate with plain rice and stew. He added a glass of milk and a cookie to the serving platter, a frozen bag of peas tucked in the corner on top of a thin cloth, and then headed purposely up the stairs.</p><p>"Knock, knock," he said instead of performing the action, and he didn't have to wait long for Kageyama to warily crack the door open. "May I come in?"</p><p>"Um."</p><p>Suga peered through the gap and raised an eyebrow at seeing the arched back of the rocking chair so close by. "Doing some redecorating?" he half-teased.</p><p>Kageyama sighed and shifted the barrier to the side, pulling the door open wide enough for Suga to come in without having to adjust his hold. He searched for a place to set the food and ended up gingerly lowering it onto the carpet, brushing away any dirt with a few quick strokes.</p><p>The teenager stared at the display flatly, tugging at the sleeves of his rumpled shirt. Sugawara invitingly patted the floor next to him.</p><p>"Oh, were you going to head to bed?" Suga wondered sheepishly when the kid didn't move, and he shifted his legs to get more comfortable. It had been a long day after all, it would make sense if the teen wanted to check in early.</p><p>Kageyama-kun looked out the window, biting on the bottom of his lip. "I thought I was grounded," he finally said quietly, not looking back at the food that was filling the room with a faint but richly satisfying aroma.</p><p>Sugawara frowned. "That didn't include skipping dinner," he told him clearly, "you're already thin enough, to be honest. Now come here so I can put some ice on that."</p><p>The bruise, a dirty purple that stood out boldly on his pale skin, looked uncomfortably inflamed. Tobio-kun dutifully lowered himself to the ground, and he held out a hand for the frozen peas. Sugawara ignored this, folding a hand towel around the cold bag and silently asking for permission to help instead.</p><p>His too-blue eyes searched Suga's face, looking for <em>something</em>, so he tried to keep his expression open and settled. Then the teen nodded his head, just slightly, and Sugawara beamed.</p><p>"Thank you, Tobio-kun," he said, touched.</p><p>He rested the icey bag against the boy's chin with utmost care, wincing along with Kageyama. "Oh sorry," he murmured, shifting again.</p><p>They shared another silence, but this time it was almost comfortable, balancing on a tip, if he could just push it over all the way. After about five minutes, Suga leaned back, letting Kageyama hold the bag so he could take a full look around.</p><p>"About today," Suga started slowly as his eyes grazed over the fallen bin of stuffed animals. Kageyama immediately tensed, watching him through his eyelashes. "You shouldn't have attacked those boys, violence is never the answer. <em>But</em>," Suga added, stressing the word and interrupting the way Kageyama was starting to make a frightening face, "they were also at fault."</p><p>The teen's mouth pinched. "Then why—"</p><p>"You needed to trust us, Tobio-kun," Suga said firmly, staring into the teen's eyes and holding it. "Daichi and I know how to handle ourselves," he added pointedly, "and we would have protected you too."</p><p>"I didn't need protection," he mumbled, slouching down. His cheeks looked slightly pink, though.</p><p>As Kageyama tried to hide his expression under his bangs, Suga didn't bother masking his own smile. "Do you maybe want to play a game of cards with me after dinner?"</p><p>Kageyama startled at the offer, but he tilted his head instead of immediately refusing. "Maybe another time," he said, his voice a whisper as he stared intently at his plate of food like it held all the answers to the universe.</p><p>He wasn't going to rush him. Sugawara grinned lightly, and his heart danced to a swinging jazz harmony. "Okay no worries. Enjoy your dinner."</p><p>"Thank you, Suga-san."</p><p>He closed the door behind him, still smiling.</p><hr/><p>Sugawara was putting on a light jacket and scarf when Daichi opened the door, a utility box tucked under his arm. The taller man's face looked a bit flushed, his scruffy hair more agitated than usual, all spiky and wild.</p><p>"Was that what you needed to get?" he pointed his chin at the box, finishing with the second loop of his scarf.</p><p>Daichi immediately caught onto the frosty tone, and he grimaced, genuinely apologetic, "I'm sorry for ditching dinner, Koushi."</p><p>His partner sighed, and he ran a frenzied hand through his greying hair. "It's fine. What did you need so desperately?"</p><p>"A doorknob with a lock and key. I'll tell you about it— wait, are you going somewhere?"</p><p>"I'm going to apologize to Haya and Jun'ichi."</p><p>"But tomorrow— isn't that what Kageyama-kun is going to do?"</p><p>Suga shook his head, easing into his shoes. "No, I think it's best I talk to them."</p><p>"I'll come with you, then." He started to set the box down, but Suga reached out a hand, his fingers warm against the taller man's chilled skin, and he softly shook his head. "Let me do this please."</p><p>They shared a look, full of so much meaning and emotion, before Daichi nodded respectfully, taking a physical step back. "Okay."</p><p>"I'll be back soon, don't worry!"</p><p>"Ah, wait," Daichi said, and as Sugawara was turning around, he pulled him into a surprise hug, squeezing their bodies together and spinning them around.</p><p>"Ack!" Suga giggled in delight, throwing his arms over his partner's shoulders, feeling all warm and cushy. He smelled like fresh rain and daisies. As they slowed into a mellow rocking, Suga rested his cheeks against the other man's chest, listening for that steady heartbeat he loved. "What brought this on?"</p><p>"I love you," Daichi said, like that was enough of an answer (and it was), and he adoringly bent down to kiss his partner's forehead.</p><p>He sighed peacefully, feeling safe. "I love you too."</p><p>They separated, missing their shared warmth already. Daichi headed up the stairs whilst Suga headed out the front door.</p><p>The spring air was a direct contrast to the snug warmth from before, and he cowered into his scarf as he walked through the sparsely lit suburban streets. A cat meowed from somewhere nearby, likely hidden under a blooming shrub, and Suga kept his pace quick and even. It was slightly unnerving being out alone after sunset, even in a safe neighborhood like this one; he was regretting asking Daichi to stay home when the breeze picked up and dark shapes skittered across the road.</p><p>As he passed more houses, he started to notice just how many windows were unlit, the buildings dark and cold, like everyone had decided to go to bed even though it wasn't nearly late enough for most of his neighbors to have called it a day.</p><p>His worries were for naught, though, when he approached Haya and Jun'ichi's house. The home was bright, a cheery orange glow bleeding into the bleak starry night. He rang the doorbell, shuffling nervously.</p><p>"I'll get it, Haya-kun," he heard, muffled, and then Kiyoko was smiling at him, her eyes curved softly behind pink frames and a paper crown resting lopsidedly on her head. "Oh you're here!" she said happily, before she faltered at Suga's frozen expression, her face drooping slightly in sympathetic confusion, "Where's your partner?"</p><p>Behind her, there was a flurry of motion and color. Kids were scrambling through the hallway, ducking through small groups of people. Streamers cascaded from the ceiling in a curling waterfall of color, blue balloons floating high above as bloated bubbles, impervious to the chaos below. Someone cheered in the distance, and there was an echoing chorus of joy mirrored back.</p><p>"Thanks, Kiyoko-kun," Haya said amiably, coming over to welcome their newest guest, holding a vanilla sponge cake with two hands. She was also wearing a party crown, glittering gold in the fluorescent light. Her smile faltered when she saw him, but it wasn't in disgust or anger about her two boys when she said, "Oh, hello, I— did you not get an invitation? Jun'ichi was the one who sent them out."</p><p>Kiyoko frowned, looking between the two of them with growing understanding. Sugawara kept the smile pasted on his skin, his lips pulling bitingly into his cheeks.</p><p>"Ah, it's no problem, I was just here to apologize, actually," he said, still smiling, and Kiyoko excused herself to find her husband.</p><p>Haya's face fell a bit and she wobbled, shifting the cake to one hand so she could tug at her hair uncomfortably. "Sugawara-kun," she said lowly, and he almost thought he heard a hint of genuine distress at the edges, "I—"</p><p>"Haya?" they both heard, and then Jun'ichi appeared. He was wearing a striped shirt, swaddled in a theatrically poofy scarf. A crown adorned his head like royalty. His grin vanished when he saw him on the doorstep and he stumbled to say, "Oh. It, it must have gotten lost in the mail. Those letterboxes can be so unreliable."</p><p>Suga kept his mask in place. "It's okay," he assured them, lying through his teeth.</p><p>They stared at each other for an awkwardly long moment before Suga put them all out of their misery and made an excuse about his partner expecting him back and goodnight everyone, enjoy the party.</p><p>The walk home was brisk and cold, so he shoved his hands in his jacket pockets and tried to reason away the hurt that sliced through him like a physical wound. It wasn't working, his thoughts skipping through every recent encounter with a fine-tuned comb.</p><p>Had <em>no one</em> thought to invite them? Did their neighbors hate them that much? He had thought their welcome party last week was fun and kind; both Daichi and Suga had been more than accommodating.</p><p>When he walked through their small garden, he paused to stoop over their potted violets. He daintily ran a finger along the outline of the petals, faltering at the shriveled tips shaded a darker color. The flowers were dying.</p><p>And the, the other <em>teachers</em>, they were just the same as Haya and Jun'ichi. His only friend was Oikawa-kun, whom he already adored like a long lost brother, but why was this always so <em>hard</em>? Osaka was supposed to be an improvement, leaders for a better, more inclusive generation.</p><p>So why, why, <em>why</em>?</p><p>Suga didn't realize he was crying until a tear landed on his hand. When he slowly turned his head, he noticed his fingers were shaking too, like a leaf trembling in the wind.</p><p>The anger came hot and fast, and before he could stop himself, he dug his fingers into the damp blackness, reaching down and scooping at dirt and roots. His anger scalded his vision red, and with an upset sob, he destructively flung the violets across the grass. The dirt landed in a disorderly spray, but the flowers rolled into a slump, heavy and weighed down, disappearing as another dark patch in the lawn.</p><p>He pulled his eyes back to the potted soil, now empty of color and in ruins, and then he folded in on himself, weeping into his knees, mushed dirt caked onto his palms and under his nails.</p><p>
  <em>The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Koushi</em>," Daichi murmured, and Suga blinked away the blur in his eyes to see his partner cloaked in creamy rays of yellow from their house lights. His voice sounded distressed.</p><p>"I'm fine," he said quickly, and had to clear his throat twice. It sounded like he'd been chewing on gravel. "I'm fine, they just forgot to invite us to a party, that's all." He laughed, and hoped it didn't sound as broken it felt, "It's just a dumb party."</p><p>"Let's get to bed," Daichi said calmly, as sturdy as a mountain. Suga straighted, and then looked over in surprise when he felt something heavy and soft fall around his shoulders. It was a blanket, tufts of white fuzz poking free and tickling his chin.</p><p>"Thank you," he said, pulling the fabric closer to his chest before turning a wry smile onto his partner. "Don't go attack-dog on them, it was seriously just a party. I was upset we weren't invited, that's all. I wasn't hurt."</p><p>"Physically," Daichi muttered perceptively.</p><p>Sugawara sighed, closing the door behind them and leaning against the wood frame. "Well, yeah." He shut his eyes, a prickly headache starting to bloom behind his temple. "But this stuff happened in Miyagi too, remember? It's nothing new."</p><p>"I recall," Daichi said, not meaning to be sharp. He also remembered how they met, blood pooling into the street and people walking by like it wasn't one of the most horrifying sights they'd ever seen in their life.</p><p>This world fostered so much <em>hate</em>.</p><p>They turned off the lights in the dining room and kitchen, and Daichi locked all the doors and windows. As Suga climbed the stairs, feeling way too old for his young age, he noticed Daichi had set his tool box with the packaged door handle and key on the ground outside Kageyama's room.</p><p>"His light was off, and I didn't want to wake him," Daichi whispered, rubbing circles on his back through the blanket. "I'll install it in the morning."</p><p>He nodded at the explanation, but also leaned down a bit to say anyway, hushed, "Good night, Tobio-kun."</p><p>They turned off the hallway light and the house was finally submerged in a sweep of grey.</p><hr/><p>Outside his door, the skylight was dark, so Kageyama used muscle memory from the previous night to inaudibly ease down the stairs, his weight nimbly counterbalanced with each step.</p><p>He almost expected to see the police officer sleeping on the couch again, but the living room was empty, bathed in a blanket of solitude. Alone, he breathed easier, drifting through the house like a dandelion sailing along a puff of wind. There was a mini flashlight on top of the refrigerator, and he flicked it on, the LED bulbs shining a faint blue beam through the darkness.</p><p>The pallid green walls were smooth to the touch, and he curiously pointed the flashlight at one of three hanging pictures. In the flurry of blurred motion, Daichi and Suga were innocently caught in the camera's sharp focus. Both were wearing dark sports jerseys as they held each other, grins as bright as the sun on their faces. A spiraling red, white, and green volleyball was obscured in the background, flying high in celebration.</p><p>With laser focus, Kageyama immediately latched onto the only important thing here: <em>volleyball</em>. He scanned the other two pictures but they were just couple-y photos: the cop kissing Suga's cheek and the silver-haired man smiling adoringly, and the other was just the two men sharing a scarf with winter lights in the shape of snowflakes in the background. Insignificant.</p><p>If they liked volleyball, they couldn't be <em>all </em>bad he supposed.</p><p>Outside, the air was humid and sticky. Kageyama brushed his bangs out of his eyes, pointing the flashlight over the patch of lawn in a sweeping wave. A cat meowed, agitated, from somewhere in the garden, but he ignored it. Instead, he strolled over soft dirt, muddying his shoes to crouch down and examine the bruised collection of flowers recently uprooted from their potted soil.</p><p>Kageyama held the flashlight in his mouth as he used both of his hands to collect the violets.</p><p>He needed to go back inside for materials, though, because the roots were slimy and discolored an unhealthy brown. He came back out with old newspapers from their recycling bin and a pair of scissors. Trying to dry the moisture, he blotted at the edge of the root mass and indelicately clipped away the rotting portions.</p><p>As he left the plant to dry on the front porch, he studied the pot. It took him a while, but as he dug through the soggy soil, he found out the drainage holes were plugged by rocks.</p><p>Yeesh, they couldn't even care for a flower, how were they going to handle a baby?</p><p>As soon the uncharitable thought crossed his mind, Kageyama felt ashamed. It wasn't the same thing, and he knew it. After freeing the blockage, he ran a stained finger along the ceramic rim. They could still save the drowned flowers, it wasn't a total lost cause.</p><p>He clapped his hands together, dusting off dirt that had caked into the lines of his skin, and a cat meowed blandly from the direction of his shoes. He glanced down to see moonlit yellow eyes, blazing bright. With another high-pitched mewl, the tabby cat arched its back and butted against his knees.</p><p>Like he'd just been bestowed the highest honor imaginable, Kageyama ran a gentle finger along the frizzy head of fur. The cat made another noise, clamoring for more attention.</p><p>Kageyama swallowed a lighthearted laugh, his eyes stinging. He missed his own cat, Volleyball. She had never been afraid of him, as fearless and untamable as the sun was bright in a cloudless sky. Miwa had always said she was a guardian spirit called down to protect them.</p><p>Somewhere in the neighborhood a crow took off into the air, and in an instant the striped cat streaked after the sudden motion. His fingers still tingled, the ghost of a kind sensation leftover, and he brought a hand up to his lips to try and hold in his wobbly smile.</p><p>When he walked back inside, he nearly jammed his toe into the tool box Daichi had left by the side of his door. Quietly and carefully, he sorted through the set of screwdrivers, nails, and the knob itself, a key in the plastic holder next to it.</p><p>Out of the two men, Kageyama felt the least comfortable with the police officer. He didn't have a good experience with law enforcement, and the man was fiercely, scarily protective. But maybe… like Suga-san said, they could open their arms and protect <em>him </em>too.</p><p>He ran a thumb along the smooth metal of the key's flat side. He just had to trust them a little more.</p><p>The sun was starting to rise when Kageyama curled up on his futon. He leaned his head in the crook of his arm and breathed out. Sleep came in waves.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! ☼ This chapter was tough to write in the beginning idk it just wasn’t flowing bleh. Hope y’all still liked it. And I also hope all my American readers have a lovely inauguration day today! &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. A Day in the Sun</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kageyama awoke to bright sunlight burning through his eyelids. He yawned widely, his ears popping, and leisurely stretched his arms above his head. This was the first good night's sleep he'd had in… a long time, actually. He allowed himself a moment to get his bearings, warm and relaxed under the weight of the fuzzy blankets.</p><p>He drifted back to sleep, and the next time he awoke, it was to the sound of two men playfully arguing outside, their voices carrying unimpeded through the open window. His room was well lit by this point, which probably meant he'd slept into the early afternoon.</p><p>When he shuffled downstairs, he was surprised to find a plate of udon noodles and stir-fried vegetables on the table. There was a note tucked down under the lukewarm dish that read in neat handwriting: <em>For Kageyama-kun. </em>In the bottom corner, a cutesy scrawl added informatively: <em>We're outside trying to garden! <span>♡</span></em></p><p><em>Trying</em>, being the key word.</p><p>In the far corner, the police officer was grumbling under his breath as he carefully fertilized a patch of golden-yellow petaled plants with wide stems and deep green, coarsely toothed leaves. There was a clump of them sprouting brightly into the air, swaying in the wind, and Kageyama watched in bemusement as Daichi very attentively patted down the nutritious soil.</p><p>Sugawara-san wasn't faring much better. Dressed in a plain, cozy sweater and straw hat, the elementary school teacher was crouched down, digging a shallow hole for a set of store-bought flowers already blooming luscious, happy colors.</p><p>This was honestly painful to watch.</p><p>"They're going to die," Kageyama told him blandly, coming to stand next to the other man. He uncomfortably shifted in place when Suga-san turned to face him, his face pinched in surprise and confusion. After a brief moment of silence, the look softened into something Kageyama couldn't read.</p><p>"Oh good mor—afternoon, Tobio-kun. How did you sleep?"</p><p>"Fine," he answered awkwardly, fiddling with his hands. "Your plants are going to die," he repeated, slower this time.</p><p>Sugawara blinked, looking back at his shallow pocket of dirt. Daichi curiously looked over too, easily hearing the conversation. He frowned at the ground before turning back to Kageyama. "Why do you say that?"</p><p>The teenager stooped low and started to scoop out more dirt with his bare hands. Suga leaned to the side, giving him space but also trying to unobtrusively peer over his shoulder. "It's not big enough," Kageyama said while he worked at deepening the shallow hole, "the roots need space to grow."</p><p>He showed Suga-san how to transplant the flowers and then purposely stalked over to Daichi, who was looking more and more alarmed by the teenager's single-minded approach. Suga cackled in the background, laughing, "I <em>knew </em>you were doing it wrong, Daichi!"</p><p>"These are dandelions," Kageyama said coolly, pointing directly at the bright yellow flowerheads. "They're invasive weeds."</p><p>"Oh," the cop mumbled, his face darkening into a deep blush. He rubbed the back of his neck, smiling embarrassedly. "My bad."</p><p>Kageyama snorted. After a barely-there hesitation, he helpfully kneeled in the dirt next to Daichi-san, taking the hand shovel from him and showing him how to get at the long, deep roots. "Try to get all of the taproot, but if you can't and it breaks, that's okay. You mostly just want to stop it from seeding."</p><p>After making sure the older man knew what he was doing, Kageyama circled back around to check on the transplanted flowers. He leaned over powder-blue blooms, brushing his hair out of his eyes as he rearranged the fertilizer into a smooth spread instead of a chunky pile. There was something inherently relaxing about caring for plants and being able to keep his hands busy.</p><p>"Are you the one who put the violets on the porch?" Suga-san asked him after a couple minutes of comfortable silence as the three of them worked on improving the garden.</p><p>He'd almost forgotten about the drowned flowers! Hopefully they had finished drying by now. Kageyama straightened and walked towards the porch without saying anything, and behind him, he heard Suga mutter, "Oh okay then," and then a second pair of footsteps followed.</p><p>"I set them out to dry," he explained as he cradled the fragile roots with both hands. "They were being overwatered and the pot wasn't draining properly."</p><p>"Ah," Suga said, and his voice mirrored his expression of shock. "So does that mean..."</p><p>"They can be saved."</p><p>Sugawara's posture relaxed, his smile turning relieved and soft. "Oh, <em>Tobio-kun</em>, thank you so much." He reached out a hand and gently squeezed his shoulder; Kageyama let him, averting his eyes to the curling purple petals instead.</p><p>"Um, yeah," he mumbled, slouching down and picking at the dirt under a fingernail.</p><p>Suga chuckled good-naturedly and he heard Daichi say from somewhere nearby, "I'm going inside for a break. I'll be back out in ten."</p><p>"Sounds good. Oh! Could you bring out some hair clips when you come back, please?"</p><p>Daichi made a noise of confirmation, the door opened and closed, and then it was just the two of them in the garden.</p><p>They repotted the violets, which were already looking much happier and healthier. Suga kept up an easygoing (sometimes one-sided) conversation about nearly anything — it ranged from asking about his favorite color (black) to a silly story about his young students having a mock marriage during lunch and the friendly divorce that followed that same day — and Kageyama hid a tentative smile in the shadow of his bangs.</p><p>As they worked, clouds drifted through the pale sky, the world flickering into shades of light and dark. As the two talked, the homeless tabby cat with the banded orange and black fur eased silently around the potted plants and shrubs, unnoticed.</p><p>Suga dug at a long-rooted weed, shifting his weight. "Do you have a favorite flower?"</p><p>"I liked the sunflowers at Kobato Gakuen," Kageyama admitted shyly as he kept his hands moving. He missed the caring look Suga sent over grounded foliage and their trashed pile of weeds. "They were really strict about everything, but whenever I had the chance, I'd walk around the garden."</p><p>"What was it like?" Suga wondered, keeping his voice soft and without judgement. Foster Care institutions weren't known for their flourishing environment, especially not in Japan. The cultural disregard for nontraditional family systems meant low funding, which meant a lack of resources, which meant...</p><p>Kageyama chewed on the question for a long time, and Suga almost thought he wasn't going to answer when the teenager said, quietly, "It was very… uncertain. You never knew what was going to happen."</p><p>Suga chanced a look at the teen's expression, but his head was bowed over the plants, obscured by a curtain of inky black hair. He dropped the topic to focus on uprooting more unwanted plants.</p><p>At one point, a familiar stray cat moseyed over, purring cheerfully, and Suga sat back on his heels to watch Tobio-kun perk up like the sun was coming out just for him.</p><p>"Hey there lil buddy," he cooed, without a single care for his audience, and Suga's heart melted like ice cream in the sun.</p><p>This was <em>precious</em>.</p><p>Kageyama glanced up at him after a few long, gentle strokes along the scruffy fur. Suga's expression must have been too mushy or emotional for him, though, because the teenager immediately pinkened all the way to his ears. His eyes slanted into glare, a heavy scowl pulling at his lips, but Sugawara knew he wasn't actually mad at him. His face looked scary, but he was actually just flustered and bad at expressing himself.</p><p>"<em>Mrrreow</em>," the stray interrupted needily, and Kageyama's expression soothed as he obediently kneaded around the cat's ears.</p><p>"I used to have a cat," he confided without prompting, his attention focused on the satisfied purring beneath his fingers; Sugawara straightened, listening attentively. "Her name was Volleyball. My sister adopted her from a family friend that was going to put her down."</p><p>Suga made a noise of sympathy, but Kageyama didn't look like he'd heard him, staring hard at the woody-stemmed knotweed clenched in his other hand. The cat butted against his free hand, maneuvering around him and rubbing against his t-shirt, but the teenager didn't go back to petting the stray, his expression vacant.</p><p>"I see, I see," Suga said, a bit desperately to fill the void. The kid looked so painfully <em>lost</em>. "Daichi's always been more of a dog person. He once—"</p><p>"<em>Yoohoo</em>!" an airy voice called out in warning, filling the garden with dramatic anticipation before the front gate was theatrically thrown open. A lower, gruffer voice was drowned out by the loud proclamation, "I come bearing gifts for fat Tobio-chan!"</p><p>Three things happened in direct sequence.</p><p>The cat darted away, agilely dodging Kageyama's instinctual grab and disappearing inside a shrub of green leaves. Kageyama scowled at his now-empty hands and mouthed 'fat?' in blank confusion. Sugawara cursed under his breath and scrambled to get up and greet his friend and coworker before he could make it to the front door.</p><p>He had completely forgotten about inviting the other man over!</p><p>"Oikawa-kun!" Suga shouted, intercepting the man with a bright laugh. "And his guest!" he added, his eyebrows shooting up at his friend's muscular companion. Ohhh, was this the elusive boyfriend?</p><p>From what he could see over the giant green alien plushie with glowing purple eyes was meticulously curled hair, a stylish royal-blue jacket, and gleeful brown eyes curved mischievously behind square glasses. Oikawa laughed, and next to him, a man with spiky hair in a hooded limber jacket smiled stiffly as he took in the scene in front of him and the quiet suburban streets.</p><p>"This is Iwa-chan! He's my—"</p><p>The man slapped the back of Oikawa's head, grumbling. "We're childhood friends," he interrupted, nodding to Suga and Kageyama respectfully. "Iwaizumi Hajime. Nice to meet you."</p><p>Oikawa's smile dimmed, but he still sounded perky and bright when he said, "Iwa-chan, you brute!"</p><p>"Nice to meet you," Suga said sweetly, patting the dirt off his hands. Kageyama made a small, uncomfortable sound of agreement behind him, and Sugawara looked over his shoulder to see the teenager at a loss for what to do, shuffling nervously and fiddling with the bottom of his shirt.</p><p>"Oh, here, this is for Tobio-chan," Oikawa explained, and he passed over the oversized stuffed animal without preamble.</p><p>Sugawara took it, swallowing a surprised "oomph" when the full weight hit his chest. Oikawa laughed at him, so the other teacher immediately passed it over to their teenaged Tobio, saying, "Please take this from me so I can beat him up."</p><p>Kageyama compliantly accepted the grand galactic being, buried by the green fluff. His blue eyes were wide and discomfited above the rounded head and the two knobby antennas.</p><p>Iwaizumi shook his head in exasperation. "Congratulations on the adoption," he said, shifting back to the formalities with a learned patience. "Is your wife inside with the baby?"</p><p>"Oh uh no," Suga said, his face scrunched up in confusion. Oikawa innocently turned his attention to the freshly transplanted flowers, cooing in delight at the vibrant colors and completely ignoring the conversation with blasé indifference. "No, I'm not married," he finished, the words falling flat.</p><p>"Oh, okay, sorry to have assumed," Iwaizumi said, sounding sincerely regretful. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before settling on glaring at his friend, who was too busy admiring the garden to notice.</p><p>"Um," Kageyama said awkwardly in a hushed greeting. Daichi sent him an amused look from the corner of his eye.</p><p>The older man had stopped next to the teen, his eyebrows raised as he took in their guests. A glittery pink barrette was in palm, and Suga turned away from the two men to say blithely, "This is Oikawa-kun, the coworker I told you about, and his friend Iwaizumi-kun. I can take the alien inside, thanks for holding on to it."</p><p>Kageyama passed the monstrosity over and studiously followed the silver-haired man's trek to the front of the house. Now that he wasn't hidden by the green gift, he could feel sharp eyes analyzing him from top to bottom. His bruise started to throb, a pulsing pain he had actually forgotten about, and he hunched down in a weak attempt to seem smaller.</p><p>"Ah, nice to meet you, I'm Daichi," the man said warmly, taking a step towards the other elementary school teacher and bowing politely. Then he nodded to Iwaizumi, saying jokingly, "Long time no see, Officer."</p><p>"Oh?" Oikawa said immediately, jumping to his feet and grinning wolfishly. "You two know each other?"</p><p>Daichi smiled, but his eyes danced between the men with a hint of hesitation. The two were a bit… off, like something big and heavy was being left unsaid, but he couldn't say what it was. "I'm a police officer too," he settled on, shrugging amiably. "We work in the same precinct."</p><p>"Very cool," Oikawa gushed, sounding absolutely ecstatic, "I work with Refreshing-kun, and you work with Iwa-chan! Small world!"</p><p>Iwaizumi scowled, crossing his arms over his chest. "Shut up, Shittykawa."</p><p>Daichi's smile ached as his mind echoed the unusual nicknames. Refreshing-kun? Shittykawa? Luckily, Suga returned at that moment, his expression soft.</p><p>"Thank you for the gift," he said, his eyes bright as he bowed deeply. Oikawa and Iwaizumi waved their hands, flustered.</p><p>"Oh it's no problem," Oikawa rushed to say, tugging on his friend's arm unthinkingly, "How is Tobio-chan doing, anyway?" He turned to give Suga a sly look, "Is he actually fat?"</p><p>"Not even close," Daichi muttered under his breath, and Suga chuckled restlessly. They shared a look, and Kageyama chewed on his bottom lip, a twisting, shifting pain anxiously rolling around his stomach.</p><p>"There was a mix up," Daichi decided on, and Suga nodded, slipping their hands together. Iwaizumi followed the motion, and his eyes widened in surprise. He shot Oikawa a glance, but the other man was purposefully fixated on the two men, ignoring him. "We're meeting with the case manager tomorrow morning. Hopefully it'll all get cleared up then."</p><p>"I'm sorry to hear that," Oikawa murmured gently. Iwaizumi nodded sympathetically, clapping a hand on Daichi's shoulder before taking a step back. "I hope it'll work out."</p><p>"Thank you."</p><p>"So who's the kid trying, <em>and failing ah hem</em>, to sneak away?" Oikawa teased loudly.</p><p>Kageyama froze midstep, and he grumbled unintelligibly at the sudden attention from all three men. He looked one step away from taking flight and disappearing inside the house.</p><p>"Ah, that's…" Suga faltered, his head tilted searchingly.</p><p>"Kageyama-kun," Daichi finished, and the other two relaxed.</p><p>"Hmm," Oikawa said, his eyes sweeping over the bruised teen. He opened his mouth to say something else, but a woman's voice unintentionally cut him off, shrill and hurried. Two pre-teens cycled down the street in blue bikes, pedaling quickly until they reached the next house over, slowing into an easy drift and shouting at each other all the while.</p><p>Kageyama scoffed lightly, the sound carrying in the wind, and his eyes viciously tracked the bicyclists. Daichi frowned warningly at him.</p><p>"Pardon the intrusion," the woman fretted as she slid around the open gate, a bouquet of tall orange flowers in her hands. When she saw the other two guests she made a distraught noise, bowing low, "I'm so sorry, I can come back another time! Oh, here."</p><p>She shoved the flowers at the nearest person, and Daichi collected them with massive bewilderment. They were never this popular usually.</p><p>Suga's expression was turning thoughtful, though, so it probably had more to do with last night's party than anything else. "It's fine, Haya-kun," Suga was quick to assure, passing the three men and giving Daichi a threatening stare to stand down. He grunted, shifting his hold on the flowers.</p><p>"Oh, well, if you're sure," she babbled, playing with the long strands of her hair. She looked away from Oikawa and Iwaizumi's curious stares to face Sugawara directly, "I came to apologize on my husband's behalf. He's very forgetful," she laughed falsely, "and I'm sincerely sorry for the mistake. It won't happen again."</p><p>Haya seemed a bit different today. Her face was tight, mouth pinched with obvious stress and guilt. Daichi thought she looked a bit grief-stricken, too.</p><p>Sugawara accepted the apology with grace, smiling kindly, and it was like he hadn't been sobbing into his knees just the night before.</p><p>She shuffled in place when they lapsed into a stilted silence, her eyes skipping over the fresh soil and spritely blooms, and she blurted out, "Oh, I love what you've done here, it's so quaint! We've been meaning to find someone, but I just keep forgetting. Who did you both hire?"</p><p>After Suga and Daichi revealed it was Kageyama, she offered to hire him on the spot. "I know this is sudden, but I'll pay you," she implored desperately, staring at the shocked teenager with pleading eyes. "How about ¥6000?"</p><p>The teen stilled, his eyes widening in surprise. It wasn't an exorbitant amount, but it was <em>a lot</em> for a high schooler who nearly lived off pocket money and nothing else. "Okay," he agreed, dismissively walking around the older men and into the street. He looked back expectantly and she startled, hurrying to show him the way.</p><p>"We'll be heading out, then," Oikawa said, a laugh in his voice; Suga and Daichi looked fully prepared to follow the teenager like a pair of overprotective parents. "Good luck with the case manager tomorrow!"</p><p>"Hmm," Daichi said absentmindedly, following after the two, the orange petals hugged to his chest.</p><p>Suga seemed a bit more aware and turned to the two men with a pout. "Aw, okay, I'll see you tomorrow then." He patted Oikawa's arm, smiling, "And thanks for taking my morning shift, by the way."</p><p>"Eh, I'm used to it," he said flippantly. "Tell me how it goes during lunch?"</p><p>"It's a promise," Suga said, nodding. He turned to Iwaizumi with a friendly grin, punching his shoulder. "It was lovely meeting you. You both should stop by again, and next time, I'll actually invite you <em>inside </em>the house!"</p><p>"Wooow," Oikawa cheered, faux-sarcastically, finishing more genuinely with an echoed, "it's a promise." He pulled on his friend's arm, and then out they went, shoving each other good-naturedly. Suga could still hear Oikawa's melodramatic whining as he rushed down the street in the opposite direction, trying to catch up to his partner and Tobio-kun.</p><p>He breathed out deeply when he caught up with them, resting his hands on his knees. Haya was pointing out which plants she wanted the teenager to trim or fix up, and the boy was nodding attentively, expressionless, but there was giddy sort of excitement in the way he shifted as he glanced all over the garden without landing on one specific spot.</p><p>Jun'ichi was sitting on the front porch, surveying the group curiously as he leaned back with his arms crossed. His eyes tracked his wife and the teenager as they ping-ponged across the lawn, chatting about soil acidity and shading and frost tolerance.</p><p>Daichi made a noise of discomfort, and Suga turned to him questioningly. He shook his head, saying, "It's probably nothing," and that was that. He wasn't going to push him; if Daichi thought something was wrong, he would act on it.</p><p>When Kageyama started to crouch down at one spot, Haya hovering unsurely over his shoulder, Suga called out, "Oh, hey, I almost forgot! Tobio-kun, please come over here."</p><p>With the teen standing in front of him, Suga plucked the pink hair clip free from his partner and said, kindly, "Here."</p><p>To all of their surprise, Kageyama leaned his head down to make it easier. Suga smile turned fond, his heart aching, and he gently collected and then curled the middle part of his bangs over his head, clipping it down tightly. Now that the boy's face wasn't hidden by his dark hair, he seemed far too young, his sapphire blue eyes shining bright. The bruise looked more and more out of place.</p><p>"...Be back before dinner," Suga finally managed to say, his heart thundering for no reason, his voice rough. He cleared his throat, widening his smile, "That's in two to three hours."</p><p>Daichi nodded silently, pulling his cold eyes away from the porch to nod lightly. "Any requests?"</p><p>Kageyama shook his head. They could actually spot the glowing blush on his face this time, despite his attempt to hide it by looking interestingly at the dirt. With his hair clipped back, they saw the start of a small smile, the way his eyes relaxed into a comfortable stare rather than his usual glare.</p><p>"Okay then," Suga said. He patted the teen's shoulder and then shoved him into the neighbor's garden. "Have fun!"</p><p>Haya smiled welcomingly, and Jun'ichi disappeared into the house without another word. Kageyama turned back to say, "Thank you," and then he was working hard as the sun basked the world in a warm brilliance.</p><p>As Suga and Daichi walked back to the house, they finally started to consider, in detail, what was going to happen on Monday. Best case: they were going to get their baby Tobio-chan, and Kageyama Tobio would be returned to a loving family waiting for him with open arms. Worst case...</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hey, lookit that, it's all in one section with no line breaks. I had to keep careful track of what people had in their hands at all times haha. Thanks for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Spring Weather</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The wind picked up in the early morning, carrying heavy, rolling clouds and obscuring the rising sun behind a sheet of black. Raindrops raced down the window, drumming against the roof in a furious staccato of sound.</p><p>"Wakey, wakey," Suga hummed cheerfully as he looped around the kitchen table, already bright eyed and cleanly put together in a crisp suit and tie. Daichi grumbled, hunching over his warm cup of coffee as he tried to read the local weather report on his phone. "Did you wake up Tobio-kun?"</p><p>"Yeah, he said he'd be down," Daichi answered, reading the same sentence for a third time: <em>heavy rain turning to partly cloudy skies..</em>. It was too early to be awake, damnit. He sighed and slumped into the back of his chair, giving his partner a tired look.</p><p>Suga mirrored him, leaning against the counter. "His door was locked?"</p><p>"Probably," Daichi said, not needing to think it over. He still remembered that moment of searing panic — wide eyes, a petrified stillness to his movements — and he couldn't fault the kid one bit for wanting the extra layer of security.</p><p>The two passed the time in relative quietness, listening with half an ear to the thrumming beat against the windows. The warm glow from the kitchen lights neatly balanced the ominous weather outside.</p><p>After finishing his coffee, Daichi worked to set out colorful plates of miso fried rice, sweet potato dumplings, and rice balls with pickled plums. Suga helpfully filled a glass of milk and flattened down the curved corners of their placemats. He glanced at the baby booster with a tentative smile.</p><p>"We're getting our Tobio-chan today," he breathed, as weightless as air. The words tingled on his tongue like a spicy aftertaste.</p><p>Daichi followed his partner's gaze, and his expression relaxed at the reminder. "Yeah."</p><p>They were finally going to meet their toddler; he would probably have a smile that could light up a room, with soft, full cheeks and big, adorable eyes. They were finally going to be <em>parents</em>. Suga blinked away the prickling behind his eyes, and his heartbeat quickened in anticipation. Their family was almost complete.</p><p>A minute later, Kageyama came into the kitchen with a jaw-breaking yawn, bleary-eyed and stooped. He was clutching his backpack strap tightly, dressed in a loose t-shirt and jeans. He paused at the sight of food, his scowl easing into a cool, unreadable look.</p><p>Breakfast was a simple affair, full of clicking chopsticks and hums of pleasure.</p><p>"Are you excited to meet your new parents?" Suga wondered, using the moment Kageyama looked up to subtly slide two extra dumplings onto the teen's plate.</p><p>The teenager cocked his head, his eyes skipping over the pale walls and lingering on the three distant photos in the background. The two men watched as his eyebrows scrunched together and his mouth thinned into a wobbly frown.</p><p>"I guess," he finally said. He ate the extra dumplings without much thought, his eyes drooping as he leaned over his plate.</p><p>Suga's expressions wilted, and he started to reach out a hand. Daichi watched him, without judgement, but Kageyama continued to eat, unaware. He weakly pulled his hand back into his lap and said instead, forcing a bright smile, a hopeful sincerity to the words, "They'll love you, I'm sure of it."</p><p>Kageyama bobbed his head indifferently, and the conversation dipped into an anticipatory silence.</p><p>The car ride was just as quiet.</p><p>Suga was excited, full of soft smiles and bright hazel eyes, his hands smoothing down the wrinkles on his jacket; Daichi was nervous, two fingers tapping on the steering wheel as he stared, focused, through the rainshower; Kageyama was blank, watching the raindrops speed down and then away, disappearing into the empty spot behind the car, gone forever.</p><p>They arrived five minutes early, and the three of them rushed through puddles, squinting against the barrage of sideways rain. Daichi closed their black umbrella with a rough shake.</p><p>The sitting area was mostly empty except for an older couple keeping careful watch on a chubby toddler, who seemed fully content to play with the hexagonal toybox grounded on the carpet. They settled into plastic chairs without saying a word. Kageyama chose the seat opposite the couple, and he ducked his head to stare attentively at his worn out shoes. Suga and Daichi held hands, pulled together.</p><p>It was happening. A dream years in the making was coming to life on a rainy spring day.</p><p>At eight o'clock, a worker clutching a pile of papers to her chest approached them, saying crisply, "Please follow me."</p><p>The three stood, and Kageyama nervously adjusted the strap on his school bag. She frowned and added, "Just Sugawara-san and Sawamura-san, please. It will be but a moment."</p><p>Kageyama slumped back into the chair, his bag clutched to his chest. His bangs shadowed his face from the group.</p><p>Sugawara smiled gently at him, and Daichi made an aborted hand motion, which might have either been a wave or an attempt to pat his shoulder. The cop grimaced, nodding instead, and then off they went, vanishing behind closed doors.</p><p>From the other side of the lobby, the toddler clapped her hands together, giggling. Kageyama looked over, but the toy appeared unchanged. The two adults showered her with praise anyway, pulling her small body close and cuddling affectionately. He turned his attention back to his shoes, cold and wet.</p><hr/><p>The case manager greeted them with a professional smile and low bow, ushering them into a small conference room with tall windows and cushioned chairs. It was all business as he shuffled his papers into a neat pile, scribbling something at the top neither man could read upside-down.</p><p>The man looked harried, with dark, messy hair and a rumpled tie. He adjusted his glasses a second time before stating formally, "This matter concerns Tobio Kageyama." He flipped over the first page and quickly browsed the document, not yet looking up at them.</p><p>Sugawara kept up a polite smile, shifting in his seat. Daichi rested his hand over Suga's, and it was a rough but warm weight that settled his nerves from a crashing riptide into a gentle wave.</p><p>The man looked up, pushing at his glasses, and his brown eyes were soft with sympathy. "There appears to have been some issues surrounding the procedure."</p><p>"Yes, we gathered," Suga quipped lightheartedly. Daichi squeezed his hand supportively.</p><p>"The good news is we should be able to resolve it quickly," the case manager continued, looking back down at the table. He flipped the paper over so the two could read it right-side-up.</p><p>They obediently scanned it, recognizing the document as the same official letter they had received in the mail last Friday. Well, mostly the same. Instead of what they remembered, the first line read: <em>Tobio, age 15 needs a new family. He has a troubled background and needs…</em></p><p>The worker continued before either of them could react, his voice gentle and pitying, "I'm sorry, the original request contained a small typographical error."</p><p><em>Tobio, age 15</em>.</p><p>
  <em>Tobio, age 1.5.</em>
</p><p>But that meant...</p><p>Sugawara's heart thundered in his ears, and he pulled his hand free to make a halted, confused gesture. "But Tobio-chan— he would have been— are you saying…?"</p><p>The case manager's expression turned pained, but he nodded resolutely, firm. "The child this request concerned, the child you both agreed to take in, is the only child available. And he is fifteen years old."</p><p>Suga turned to Daichi, pale, and his partner scrubbed a hand down his face, a weary look in his eyes.</p><p>So there was no baby, no other Tobio to welcome with open arms. The baby booster, the safety seat, the planetary mobile, the giant alien plushie…all the preparations and hopeful fantasies, it was all for nothing. Their family was down to two once again.</p><p>His heart was swallowed whole, and the world felt empty and colorless.</p><hr/><p>"Daichi Sawamura and Koushi Sugawara are hereby exempted from the contract pertaining to the placement of Tobio Kageyama," the case manager read, enunciating the words carefully.</p><p>The three were sitting on the opposite side of the table, somber and silent. Sugawara sniffed, his lips wobbling. Daichi frowned down at his lap. Kageyama stared, wide-eyed and trembling. His bag was on the floor, tucked under his chair.</p><p>"Tobio Kageyama is to be reinstated at Kobato Gakuen, effective immediately."</p><p>The words came from somewhere else, wispy whispers in the corner of the room. His mind was as loud as the rainstorm outside, and it felt like all he could hear was rushing water, the roaring of an incoming storm.</p><p>He couldn't go back there.</p><p>He <em>refused</em>.</p><p>His breathing choked, suffocated, and he was standing before he knew it. Everyone stared up at him — surprised, confused… concerned? — but it didn't matter. He took off, sliding on the slick floor, and threw the door open before anyone could think to grab him.</p><p>"Tobio—" someone shouted fearfully, but he turned the corner and then rain pelted his face, cold and barbed, and he refused to stop. Water splashed against his shoes and dampened his clothes into a soggy, heavy weight.</p><p>He had the money from his gardening work, he could find a place, live on his own. He'd be a runaway, but he'd <em>make </em>it work, he had to.</p><p>"<em>Tobio</em>!" a high-pitched voice shouted, "<em>Wait</em>!" but Kageyama ran even faster, skidding into a crosswalk and darting inside the packed-like-sardines crowd. He dodged low-held umbrellas with only a hazy awareness. His shoulder slammed into someone, and the bystander spun from the force, shouting angrily but able to catch his balance. Kageyama wasn't as lucky, and his feet slipped out from under him, his palms stinging from the rough asphalt as rain drenched him from head to toe.</p><p>The black pavement was painted a bleeding red from the stoplight, a vibrant sheen of color contrasted against the dark downpour. He was drowning and couldn't catch his breath.</p><p>"<em>Tobio</em>!" Suga-san cried over the sound of rumbling engines and torrential rainwater, and he could see the man's matted-down silver hair and shiny eyes, which almost looked blue from the cars' glowing headlights. The teacher fell to his knees, and frigid water splashed around them. They were the rock the pedestrians flowed around.</p><p>"Tobio-kun," the older man said again, quieter, and his eyes glistened from more than just the rain. "I'm sorry, we'll fix this, we'll <em>fix </em>this, I promise<em>.</em>"</p><p>Kageyama's breathing hitched, and the rainwater burned his skin. He blinked away the droplets that had caught on his eyelashes, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his palms. "I can't go back there," he garbled, gasping for breath as he curled inward, "I can't go back, Suga-san, please don't make me."</p><p>"Shhh, shh, we'll figu—"</p><p>A car honked and they both startled, huddling closer to each other; Sugawara instinctively shifted into a protective stance, but it was just an empty street. He pulled the teenager to his feet, gripping his bare arm. The puddles turned into a misty green reflection as they hurried to the other side.</p><p>The two stumbled under a convenience store's overhang, and the rain rumbled over their heads, tumbling down the edge of the roof in big, heavy droplets.</p><p>Suga didn't let go of Kageyama's arm, his hold almost painfully tight. "We'll be okay," he murmured confidently against the rain and wind and traffic. "We will."</p><p>Kageyama shivered, scrabbling for the other man's jacket with shaking, pale fingers. Water flowed from his bangs, rushing down his cheeks like never-ending tears. "Please, <em>please</em>," he babbled, unhearing, "I'll behave, I promise. If you won't let me live on my own— I promise I can make my own food, you wouldn't have to do anything. You don't even have to see me, I can—"</p><p>Suddenly his voice cut off, swallowed by damp fabric. A hand was combing through his hair, gently scraping against his scalp. Sugawara-san made a hushing, murmuring sound, pulling him closer.</p><p>A sob was ripped from his throat and he ducked his head into the other man's shoulder, shaking. "I'm sorry," he keened, holding tight, thinking of stuffed animals and spinning planets. "I always fuck everything up. I think I'm cursed."</p><p>The rain continued to rage above them. They stayed there for what felt like hours, pulled together like binary stars in a gravitational give-and-take. Shiny business shoes walked past them, wide-brimmed umbrellas coming and going. Finally, Kageyama slipped free, and his eyes were red-rimmed and puffy in the dim lighting, an embarrassed pink dusting his nose and cheeks.</p><p>"I'm sorry," he muttered again, scuffing a knuckle across his face and daring a glance at the other man.</p><p>Sugawara-san looked serious, with pinched lips and heavy eyes, but he kept his hand on the teen's shoulder, warm and grounding. It was like they were the only two people in the world right now.</p><p>"Why can't you go back?" he asked pointedly, and Kageyama didn't look away. He crumpled, just a bit, and the teacher caught him with both hands on his shoulders. Suga's expression eased into concern, and Kageyama thought of wilting violets and purring tabby cats.</p><p>He opened his mouth and told the truth, leaving nothing out.</p><hr/><p>The wind picked up as they trudged back to the agency, the heavy rainfall transforming into a sideways drizzle that was just as wet and bothersome.</p><p>"Should've grabbed the umbrella," Suga muttered defeatedly, brushing at his soggy suit and tie. Kageyama was speed-walking by his side, deliberately hiding his face behind his wet hair as his hands nervously played with the edge of his white shirt.</p><p><em>I always fuck everything up, </em>the kid had said, taking full responsibility, not once considering the fact that it was the agency's clerical mistake that caused this whole ordeal in the first place. Never before had he felt such a fierce need to hold someone tight and never let go.</p><p>The two stayed silent as they turned a corner. Tall buildings boxed them in on both sides, the windows a murky yellow-orange glow pushing into the overcast gloom. The sidewalk opened into a parking lot, and then they were passing small cars and a familiar rusty-red subaru. Kageyama's pace turned into a sluggish crawl the closer they got, but Sugawara didn't falter.</p><p>"Stay in the car," he ordered when they neared the front door, the words leaving his mouth before he could think about what he was offering. Kageyama startled, blinking confusedly through the drizzle. He looked terrible, with fever-red cheeks, nonstop sniffles, and glassy blue eyes.</p><p>Suga steeled himself, his decision cementing. Daichi would understand, he'd have to. He rummaged through his pockets, thankful he was in the habit of bringing his own spare key. He threw it to the teen, saying, "You're not going back there. I'll figure something out."</p><p>The kid caught it easily, staring back. "Suga-san," he said, but was unable to find the right words to fully express himself, "I don't—what can I— t-thank you." He pulled at the bottom of his shirt, angry at himself for failing at such a simple task.</p><p>Sugawara closed the distance between them to rest a hand on his shoulder, squeezing lightly. "Don't worry about it. Try to dry off in the car, we'll be back out soon."</p><p>He didn't wait for the teenager to nod, speeding through the double doors and heading straight for the reception desk.</p><p>They were going to make this right.</p><p>"<em>Koushi</em>!" he heard, the voice sharp with surprise, and he immediately turned back to the sitting area. <em>Daichi</em>, his heart sang, warming, Daichi, Daichi, Daichi. He rushed over, ignoring the way he was starting to make a scene in the quiet, mundane lobby. He could practically feel the cold eyes following him, upset with the interruption.</p><p>"Are you okay? Where's Kageyama-kun?" the taller man searched his face for any sign of distress or pain. Satisfied, Daichi breathed out a relieved sigh, pulling his partner into a hug despite Suga's warning that he was soaked to the bone. A hand rested on his head, holding him close, "Where's the kid?" he mumbled, and Suga relaxed into the embrace.</p><p>"The car," Suga answered, clutching his partner like a lifeline. Daichi hummed openly, reading between the lines like only he could do, and Suga took the hint, explaining, "We can't send him back to the institution. He told me things, it was.. <em>terrible</em>, Daichi. It wouldn't be right to just... abandon him there."</p><p>"Okay, that's okay," he answered softly after a beat of thoughtful silence, "let's talk with the case manager, maybe he'll let us keep him until they can find a new family."</p><p>His partner was so agreeable, following the new flow like a leaf in the wind. Sugawara wished more than ever he could marry him. He could forever trust Daichi to be there, always by his side, no matter what.</p><p>He sniffed, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, stepping out of the hug. Daichi slipped their hands together in a physical and mental show of support, and they walked past the staring, judgemental couples on their way to the receptionist. Luckily, the case manager was still preparing for his next meeting, and he ushered them into the same conference with a tight, concerned smile.</p><p>The meeting went well, all things considered. They managed to come to a simple compromise: the agency had until Friday this week to find Tobio Kageyama a new family, and failing that, he would be returned to Kobato Gakuen.</p><p>Daichi and Suga were still holding hands when they walked back to the car. Daichi had the teenager's backpack slung over his shoulder, and Sugawara held the umbrella over both their heads, encasing them in a protected bubble, closed off from the rest of the world.</p><p>"Are we going to be okay?" Daichi finally asked, his voice barely above a whisper. The rain pattered above them, gentle and off-beat.</p><p>Today had been a whirlwind of emotions, and even though they were keeping Kageyama for another week, that didn't change the fact that there was no other baby. For them, they were going all the way back to the beginning.</p><p>"We've already waited years," Suga acknowledged, smiling sadly, "what's a few more in the grand scheme of things?"</p><p>The teen caught sight of them before they reached the car, and he practically threw the door open, stumbling to stand before them in the light rain, flustered and pale like a criminal on trial. He threw himself into the lowest bow they'd ever seen, cutting himself perfectly in half.</p><p>"Thank you, Suga-san, Daichi-san!" he shouted at the ground, and then winced apologetically at the unintended volume.</p><p>Daichi made a soft noise in the back of his throat, and Suga quickly tugged on the teen's shoulder, laughing wetly. "Tobio-kun, stop that, you're getting all wet again."</p><p>Standing straight, Kageyama stared intensely, and it was a bit disconcerting (but mostly sweet) to see his flashing eyes and vicious scowl.</p><p>"Scary," Suga joked, and he poked Kageyama's cheek, effectively turning the evil-eye into an uncomfortable frown, and the mood immediately lightened. "Now let's all get in the car and go home, c'mon, c'mon." He flapped his hands at them, and the two obediently slid inside the car, buckling their seat belts.</p><p>As soon as they arrived at the house, Sugawara rushed from room to room, changing into dry clothes, grabbing his pre-made bento, shuffling through the papers on the table for a specific document about the life-span of whales. The teacher still had to work this afternoon, but Daichi had taken the day off in preparation for taking care of a toddler. But now <em>that</em> was out of the question...</p><p>Sugawara called back, "Be good," before closing the door behind him. Neither of them knew who exactly he was referring to.</p><p>"So…" Daichi said stiffly once it was just the two of them. He was almost surprised the teen hadn't immediately vanished into the baby's— the <em>guest </em>room. The last time they were alone together, Daichi had unintentionally scared the kid witless.</p><p>Kageyama echoed back, shuffling his feet together, "So.."</p><p>Yeah, this was going to be awkward.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ugh, this stupid chapter went through like three different iterations. Sad chapters are my weakest point, apparently. I also think I have a handle on how long this story'll be… probably 8 to 10 chapters? So we're past the halfway point, yay! Thanks for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. You Don't Win Alone, That's Just How It Is</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Do you want to... watch some tv?" Daichi tried over the uncomfortable silence swamping the room. He scratched his head, adding, "Feel free to pick whatever you want."</p><p>"Okay," Kageyama said agreeably. He tucked himself into the corner of the couch, and stared back at Daichi expectantly.</p><p>Oh, they were going to watch it together. Alright then.</p><p>The suffocating atmosphere didn't improve in the slightest. Daichi tried to give the teenager the remote, but the kid shook his head, pulling a cushion into his lap and peering out over the top of it. Feeling awkward, Daichi perched on the other side of the couch and slowly scrolled through the channels, glancing at Kageyama from the corner of his eye. His face remained blank no matter which shows he passed (animes, documentaries, news, dramas...).</p><p>"Do you see anything you like?" he asked after passing three dramas and landing momentarily on a crime-detective series about two grown orphans (a mob boss and a detective) who were trying to discover who murdered their childhood caretaker and why/how it was covered up.</p><p>Kageyama shrugged, squeezing the cushion to his chest and unsubtly avoiding eye contact.</p><p>"How about this one?"</p><p>The teen nodded, mumbling "sure," and the television drowned out their silence with fast-paced action shots and clever dialogue. Daichi found himself leaning forward, even though he'd already watched the series with Suga a few years ago and could clearly recall the ending. He had forgotten how nicely the actors played off each other, an unlikely pair working together to right a terrible wrong.</p><p>Halfway through the next episode and trying to remember the plot twist, Daichi finally noticed the teen had fallen asleep, slumping over the side of the couch with his neck bent at a painful angle. The kid deserved a good nap after this morning.</p><p>He turned the television off without hesitation and tiptoed past, holding his breath. As he circled the couch, the kid made a whimpering sound low in his throat and Daichi froze. Kageyama's eyes were squeezed shut, eyebrows narrowed and twitching, and his teeth were making a scraping, popping noise as he ground them together.</p><p>It was a really pitiful sight, and the tug on his heartstrings <em>hurt</em>.</p><p>"Hey, hey," Daichi whispered, unable to listen to the sound any longer, and he shuffled forward to tentatively rest a hand on Kageyama's shoulder, "Wake up, kid."</p><p>Kageyama shifted, flinching into the back of the couch and trying to subconsciously ease away from the gentle touch. His eyes flickered behind his eyelids, lost in his bad dream.</p><p>Daichi frowned and pulled his hand back. If Suga were here, he'd know what to do. His partner could read people like no other, charmed and fascinated by their subtle intricacies. But Suga wasn't here, it was just Daichi — whom Kageyama already kept at a distance, wary and afraid — and he didn't want to make their relationship any worse.</p><p>The teen shivered, whimpering again, and Daichi made his decision. He wasn't going to wake him up; it had been an emotionally exhausting morning, and he needed to sleep, even if it wasn't very pleasant. He suspected that it would actually be worse to be unexpectedly severed from a painful dream than it would be to follow it out, naturally easing back into consciousness.</p><p>He edged out of the room, his socks noiseless on the tiled floor.</p><p>Earlier today, after they'd returned and changed into dry clothes, Kageyama had surprised him by sticking close, weirdly clingy. He couldn't tell what the kid was trying to say. He didn't seem like he wanted anything from Daichi, so why was he following him around like a baby duckling?</p><p>Daichi crept up the stairs, careful and quiet.</p><p>While he hadn't wanted to admit it, he had known on some level that it was unlikely, if not improbable, that two Tobios would be mismatched with their intended families on the same day. That didn't make the rejection hurt any less, though. For all of them.</p><p>He returned with a fleece throw blanket, decorated on the outside with glow in the dark stars. As he draped the teenager in the extra layer, he watched the shivering gradually diminish. The boy thoughtlessly curled into the midnight-blue fuzz, mumbling unintelligibly. Daichi smiled tenderly, and before he knew it, he was gingerly brushing Kageyama's bangs out his eyes and pulling the blanket up to his chin.</p><p>"Sleep well," he said, his hands warm. He stepped away, not realizing he was still smiling.</p><p>With Kageyama-kun resting, Daichi headed upstairs. On his right was the baby's room: the front of the door had TOBIO hanging in rounded, faux-childish letters. If he could make just one thing right today, it would be to spare his partner the grief of clearing out the baby's things.</p><p>He stepped around the futon, the blankets neatly folded; the teen's backpack rested upright next to his pillow. That was all Kageyama had to his name right now… a spare futon and the contents inside his small suitcase.</p><p>Outside, the sun started to peek through fast-moving clouds, the wind rumbling through the trees.</p><p>He dutifully worked at shoving the rocking chair against the wall and carrying the woven basket of stuffed animals, giant green alien included, into the closet. Daichi frowned as he collected the mobile from the ceiling and gathered the cutesy knickknacks from the surface of a pale blue dresser. He paused to hold a baby crow in one hand, beady black eyes staring back at him.</p><p>"I'm sorry," he heard, jarringly loud in the rhythmic atmosphere he'd built up, and he jumped, swiveling on his heel to stare at the teenager. He hadn't even heard him come up the stairs.</p><p>Kageyama looked… broken. There was no better way to describe the splintering crack across his face.</p><p>"I didn't mean— I know you didn't want— I'm.. sorry," he finished lamely, hugging the folded, starry blanket to his chest.</p><p>He sharply heard the rest of the aborted sentences in his head.</p><p><em>I didn't mean</em>— <em>for this to happen.</em></p><p><em>I know you didn't want</em>— me<em>.</em></p><p>"No," Daichi found himself saying, forcefully. He dropped the crow into the bag without another thought. "No, no, this isn't your fault, you didn't do <em>anything wrong</em>."</p><p>The kid flinched. "But—"</p><p>"Tobio-kun," Daichi said gently, stopping in front of him. Kageyama peered through his bangs, trying to hold eye contact. This was... <em>trust, </em>desperate and vulnerable, and he refused to mess this up. "This entire situation was unexpected, for <em>all </em>of us. But today, this morning, we <em>decided </em>to let you stay with us; we made that choice, knowingly."</p><p>Knowing <em>you</em>, was left unsaid but not unheard.</p><p>Kageyama hadn't been following his footsteps because he needed something from Daichi, he'd been clingy and inseparable because he thought Daichi needed something from <em>him</em>. What an incredibly heavy burden for someone so young to carry on his shoulders.</p><p>"You didn't take anything away from us," he said very clearly, wanting to reach out and hold him. He didn't, knowing his limits; they didn't have that kind of relationship yet, but maybe it wasn't completely off the table. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"</p><p>"Yeah," Kageyama-kun whispered, dropping his head and stepping away. There was no fear in the movements, however, so Daichi smiled and smoothly side-stepped the teenager for the door.</p><p>"Good, good. Now how about some lunch? Any requests?"</p><p>"Oh, um, anything is fine, thank you."</p><p>They walked down the stairs together, and this time, the silence didn't sting, prickling in the air like an electrical storm. It settled, blanketing them in a gentle snowfall, pristine and glittery-white.</p><hr/><p>The wind roared and whistled while they ate lunch, which consisted of simple rice balls, seasoned with sesame seeds and neatly wrapped in sheets of seaweed. Kageyama nibbled on his third onigiri, a small lift in the corner of his mouth. His focus was on the three framed photos on the far wall, so Daichi leaned back, folding his hands in his lap.</p><p>"Do you play?"</p><p>Kageyama blinked slowly, swallowing his bite. He tilted his head, his face scrunching up as he pulled his eyes away from the pictures.</p><p>"Volleyball," Daichi elaborated, chuckling at his bewildered expression. "Koushi told me you had a cat named Volleyball so I just assumed…"</p><p>"Oh," Kageyama mumbled, and then he admitted shyly, "Yeah, I was a setter. My sister taught me."</p><p>With just one sentence, the teen's entire face lightened. His lips formed a bumpy little grin, a high pink dusting his cheekbones. This… this is what Koushi meant when he said Kageyama was like a baby seal. Daichi had scoffed at the time, picturing the teen's sour face and grumbling words, but now, <em>now</em>, he could see where his partner was coming from.</p><p>He also didn't miss the past tense.</p><p>"Suga plays setter too. You'll have to ask him about it sometime," he said casually, rocking back on his chair and looking at the kid over the table, adding, "I'm a wing spiker."</p><p>"You still play?" Kageyama asked, perking up and giving Daichi his full attention, the food forgotten.</p><p>"Our old Neighborhood Association had a team, we'd get together and play matches every other weekend."</p><p>"So cool," the teenager murmured sincerely, almost happily.</p><p>Daichi grinned, running a hand through his hair. He didn't hesitate to offer, "How about we practice some tosses?"</p><p>"Right now?"</p><p>"Yeah sure, why not? I have a ball, and there's a park only fifteen minutes walking distance from here."</p><p>"O-okay!" Kageyama answered, his eyes big and round at just the thought.</p><p>...Like a baby seal. <em>Cute</em>.</p><p>"Great," Daichi returned, pushing in his chair as he headed for the closet. This isn't how he thought the day was going to go, even after the upset from this morning, but if volleyball of all things was what turned it around, he wasn't going to question it.</p><hr/><p>The park was lined with cherry trees, pastel-pink petals sweeping across the paved walking trail in twirling gusts of color. Daichi had the volleyball tucked under one arm, leisurely keeping pace as they skirted around puddles and searched for an open, grassy area that would give them enough room to both set and receive.</p><p>By his side, Kageyama was barely containing a smile, the thrilled expression hidden under the high collar of one of Suga's old turtleneck sweaters, his fingers twisting and picking at a loose thread in anxious excitement. "I saw a YouTube video where someone did a jump serve that was as strong as a <em>spike</em>."</p><p>"Whoa," Daichi responded, his eyebrows shooting up. That sounded terrifying, and he basically said as much.</p><p>"I couldn't find the name of the player though," the teen continued as he kicked a stray pebble with the inside of his shoe. It skittered in front of them, bouncing against the wooden-pegged fence on their left, and then dropping off completely into the canal below. Kageyama frowned at the wet plopping noise, shoving his hands into his pockets.</p><p>They crossed a small bridge after about five minutes of walking, seeing a wide patch of unused lawn on the other side, but both of them were startled back a step by the sheer strength of a sudden crosswind. Kageyama stumbled, his bangs wildly whipping around his face, and Daichi immediately caught his arm, steadying him before he could trip backwards.</p><p>"Careful," he said gently, absently brushing away the petals that had blown into the teen's hair and not bothering to hide his soft smile. "There you go."</p><p>Satisfied, Daichi continued on, shifting the volleyball to his other arm. Kageyama blinked at his back, a bit stupefied, and then his cheeks warmed uncomfortably. He hurried to join the other man, staring at the ground in silence until they arrived.</p><p>In front of them was a mushy, grassy section just off the pathway, and the sakura trees only lined the side instead of creating a ceiling of pale-pink blossoms to seal them in. Ducking under the branches, the sky opened into a deep blue marred only by the speeding grey clouds carried by the strong wind current.</p><p>"You ready?" Daichi asked, smiling as he shifted into a receiving position.</p><p>"Yes!" Kageyama answered wholeheartedly, catching the multicolored ball. His expression sharpened, focusing on one thing only, and that was volleyball.</p><p>To compensate for the crosscourt wind nipping his cheeks, Kageyama tried to serve with a longer, stronger touch, but he miscalculated and the ball started to drop a foot or two earlier. He frowned, chagrined, but the cop only laughed and quickly shifted forward, bumping the ball upwards into the blue sky in a long, successful receive.</p><p>As Kageyama ran under the ball to make a toss, he couldn't help remembering the last time he had practiced with his sister, the sun setting the world aflame in a wash of orange and red. He hoped she was still proud of him, despite everything.</p><p>The view above his hands narrowed.</p><p>A setter touches the ball the most out of all the players on the court. He has to make every second count.</p><p>Where was the wind? Would it help or hinder him? He caught the ball in a feather-light touch and then <em>pushed </em>it free.</p><p>With every pair of set-receives they did, Kageyama rapidly began to adapt to the older man's playing style. Each toss was a split-second decision taking into account everything around him, from the changing winds to the soft, sinking dirt below their shoes. He got used to the way it felt like he was oversetting, using the attacking gusts to put more force in his moves.</p><p>At a sudden sidewind, Kageyama took less than a second to adjust his toss, adding a topspin on the ball to cut through the surge. Daichi made a surprised face, lunging to the side. It bounced on his thumb, carried into the wind and too far to the left.</p><p>"I'll get it," the teen offered, breathing out and wiping his face with his arm, a peaceful smile in the corner of his mouth.</p><p>"That was <em>amazing</em>," he heard behind him, and Daichi's tone was soft and awed. When he turned around, holding the ball with both hands, he didn't see any jealousy or resentment either, no matter how hard he looked.</p><p>"Oh, um, thanks," he said to his shoes, the wind ruffling his bangs.</p><p>The cop laughed kindly. "Ready for more?"</p><p>Kageyama must have nodded too excitedly, because the man chuckled again. They practiced well into the afternoon, and it wasn't until a batch of high schoolers in black uniforms started to pass them, the sound of casual conversations floating by, that Daichi called for a break. The older man ducked under the delicate blossoms to find a bench, and Kageyama slowly followed after him.</p><p>He wasn't tired yet, but he also didn't want to play by himself either. As the cop caught his breath, the volleyball held to his side, Kageyama looked out over the canal. The current was strong, carrying the fallen leaves downstream. His reflection warped, rippling under pink petals, and a longing smile answered him back.</p><p>Something twisted and pulled in his stomach, painfully tight, and he immediately dropped the expression to scowl at the other side of the canal. Like a familiar mantra, he reminded himself not to get complacent. He was only allowed to stay with them until they found a new family. They wanted a baby, a clean start, not broken goods.</p><p>A mop of bright orange hair caught his eye, and then he latched onto the volleyball being thrown in the air in a high arc. It caught in the wind and veered sharply to the right, and Kageyama heard and saw the elementary schooler make an outraged squawk. A tall high schooler was shaking his head, starting to walk away.</p><p>He leaned forward before he knew it. "You <em>suck</em>!" he said aloud, truthfully amazed by the sheer lack of skill, but his voice was far too loud, and the wind helpfully carried it over to the mismatched group. Immediately after he said it, he wanted to take it back.</p><p>Four people swung their heads in his direction, various degrees of shock, surprise, confusion, and anger on their faces, and he wanted to jump right in the canal. He glanced over his shoulder worriedly, but Daichi just looked amused.</p><p>"Why don't you go and play with them? Make some friends," he offered pleasantly, spinning the ball in his hands. Kageyama's wide eyes must have alerted him to his distress though, because his smile dropped into a serious look. "I'll still be here if you need me."</p><p>Except Kageyama didn't want to play with a loser who couldn't even receive properly. He wasn't scared, okay? He just wanted to continue practicing volleyball with someone who could actually use techniques and—</p><p>"OI! GRUMPY-SAN! SAY THAT TO MY FACE!"</p><p>Kageyama turned back to see that the group had wandered over to the other side of the fence, directly facing him across the canal.</p><p>He pouted, crossing his arms and hunching down uneasily. "I'm not going to insult a ten year old," he returned loudly, sniffing.</p><p>The redhead's expression went slack and Kageyama felt vindicated for all of two seconds before the shortie burst at the fence, leaning over the side to shout furiously, "I'm in HIGH SCHOOL, ASSHOLE!"</p><p>The towering blond by his side laughed meanly, and the other teen smiled a bit awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head. The girl in the group looked like she was going to have an aneurism, waving her hands at them and likely making shushing noises, to no avail.</p><p>That kid was in high school? No way. Kageyama scowled and leaned forward too, not one to be outmatched. "You're the asshole!" he shouted, floundering for a better insult, "uh, DUMBASS!"</p><p>Daichi snorted, and Kageyama hoped the heat in his cheeks wasn't noticeable. This is surely not what the man meant when he said to make friends.</p><p>"<em>That's it</em>," he saw rather than heard, and then the high schooler was racing towards the bridge at an alarming speed. The other teens in his group were either highly concerned (the girl squeaked, tugging frantically on her friend's arm) or completely indifferent (the tallest boy just stared flatly and then turned on his heel, leaving the other two to pick a side). Kageyama didn't care to find out what they did, panickedly turning around.</p><p>"Um," he said, hurrying over to the bench.</p><p>The cop was still smiling, though, which brought him up short. The last time he'd gotten into a fight, the older man had seemed so disappointed, and he'd been immediately grounded. He still had a fading bruise on his chin to prove that it hadn't been one his greatest ideas.</p><p>"I'm still here," Daichi reminded him pointlessly, and then clarified when Kageyama's scowl deepened, "He won't attack you, I promise."</p><p>Kageyama wasn't sure where all that confidence was coming from, because as the redhead stalked his way, he looked positively <em>murderous</em>. What he was not expecting, however, was for the other teenager to skid to a sudden stop, the tips of his wild orange curls barely reaching his chin.</p><p>"<em>Tiny</em>," Kageyama mumbled in quiet surprise, and the other boy's jaw dropped.</p><p>"Are you serious right now? You wanna fight, huh??"</p><p>Kageyama frowned, glancing at the other side of the canal. The girl and boy were staring back at them in concern, so he scuffed a foot at the ground and barked, "What do you want?"</p><p>"I want—"</p><p>"How about you both settle this with a volleyball match? Loser apologizes for the name calling," Daichi interrupted slyly. The redhead blinked at the adult, just noticing his presence, before a fierce look of game-ready competitiveness settled his features.</p><p>"I'm game," he said acceptingly.</p><p>Kageyama twisted his fingers together. <em>Fine</em>. "I'm going to win," he said instead of what he wanted to say, his heartbeat thundering in his ears. The other boy scoffed, but they both followed Daichi without another word.</p><p>Very quickly, the two realized that it was more of a team exercise than anything competitive. Daichi waved a dismissive hand at their objections, slipping under the powdery blossoms. "I'll be over there, call if you need me."</p><p>"Was that your dad?" the boy asked once they were alone. He didn't look so angry anymore, just slightly confused and curious.</p><p>Kageyama stared at the ball in his hands instead of answering. "How do you want to do this?"</p><p>"I'll go first," the other boy offered happily, a teasing lilt to the words, "My name is Hinata Shouyou."</p><p>"...Kageyama Tobio."</p><p>Hinata grinned, and it was like the sun was coming out. The wind ruffled his bright hair, petals dancing around them. "Nice to meet you, Grumpyama."</p><p>Instead of answering him — he wasn't a toddler, okay? — Kageyama served the ball right into his face. Hinata gasped, dodging at the last second and barely catching himself from landing in the soggy grass.</p><p>"<em>HEY</em>!" he hissed, outraged.</p><p>"Enough talking," Kageyama tried, stomping over to the ball, but Hinata just shook his head.</p><p>"You don't live around here do you? Haven't seen you at school before."</p><p>He just wanted to play volleyball, was that so bad? Exasperated, Kageyama said, "I just moved here," and realized too late that Daichi could still hear him.</p><p>Would the other man correct him? Say he was just visiting? No objections came forward though, so Kageyama glanced back through the branches and flowers to see Daichi-san staring at the two of them with a fond smile on his face. Kageyama turned to the other teenager, the churning in his stomach calming.</p><p>Hinata hummed thoughtfully, easing into position.</p><p><em>Finally</em>.</p><p>"How old are you?" the teen asked, bumping the ball into the air. It skewed to the left, so Kageyama had to quickly adjust his position.</p><p>"Fifteen," he answered absently, watching the ball soar high in the air, above the branches, obscuring the sun.</p><p>"Heh," the redhead said, gleefully, "I'm older than you. Turning sixteen in a month!"</p><p>Kageyama frowned, pulling his eyes from the sky to see Hinata leap into the air, wingless but somehow still flying anyway. He slammed the ball into the sodden dirt, and it made a mushy, squishy sound at the impact, bouncing a few more steps.</p><p><em>Whoa</em>, his mind echoed.</p><p>Hinata's smile beamed, hearing him. "I know, right? I may be short, but I can jump."</p><p>He sure could. Kageyama suddenly didn't care about who apologized or for what, he just wanted to keep playing and never stop.</p><p>They practiced tosses, spikes, and receives (which Hinata did still suck at, he wasn't going to lie) well into the waning hours of daylight. Daichi had migrated from the bench to instead lean against a tree, his arms crossed as he watched them bounce the ball back and forth in a never-ending symphony.</p><p>"One more round," he allowed, the sky painted vibrant purple and orange hues. The sunsets always looked the prettiest after a storm.</p><p>The three walked back together; Hinata rolled his bike by his side, keeping pace with the other two men and chatting cheerfully about his favorite television series.</p><p>"I'll see you later?" he asked once they reached the main road, nimbly mounting his bike. His eyes glowed amber in the darkening light.</p><p>"I…" Kageyama said, but the words got caught in his throat and he ducked his head, fumbling with his long sleeves.</p><p>"Yeah, you will," Daichi answered for him, squeezing his shoulder amicably. Kageyama shifted, warmed by the weight.</p><p>Hinata kicked off, and their party was down to two once again.</p><p>When they got home, Sugawara-san was humming a light tune, dancing around the kitchen as something boiled on the stove.</p><p>"Uh oh," Daichi mumbled under his breath, and Kageyama saw the way he immediately regretted it when Suga heard him and pointed a wooden spoon in his face menacingly.</p><p>"I can cook," he defended, so Kageyama eased around the couple to peek into the saucepan. It smelled rancid, and he couldn't help the frown on his face. He turned around to see both men staring at him, but Suga didn't look annoyed.</p><p>He didn't know what his expression was, but if he had to name it, it would almost be…</p><p>"Love you, Koushi, but leave the cooking to me," Daichi teased, stepping away to reach for some ingredients in the fridge. "How about you help Tobio-kun set the table?"</p><p>"Fine," his partner groaned, but he smiled at Kageyama, good-naturedly.</p><p>Dinner was quiet but nice. Kageyama started to clean the dishes when Daichi stopped by his side, holding the ball they had played with that afternoon in his hands. It was washed, no longer muddy and scuffed from the dirt.</p><p>"Here, you can have this."</p><p>Kageyama wiped his soapy hands on a dishtowel, his mind blanking. No one had ever—</p><p>"It's a present," Suga-san added, coming up to peck the police officer's cheek. He rested his chin on the man's shoulder and smiled over at the teenager. "Take it."</p><p>Kageyama took it. This wasn't fair, how nice today had felt for him. Both Daichi and Suga had their hearts broken this morning, and here he was, being offered a present and kind smiles. They should hate him.</p><p>"Sleep well," someone said, and then the other one was ruffling his hair, laughing.</p><p>They <em>should</em>, but for some reason, they didn't. Kageyama wasn't sure what to do with himself anymore.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading yay! Looks like we got two fluffy chapters to cushion ch. 6 on both sides, idk how that happened lol.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Settling Down</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I am SO SORRY for being MIA; thank you for being so patient! Please enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After the tumultuous start to the week, the casual domesticity that followed felt like an out of place chapter in a fast-paced fantasy epic. Even the weather remained pleasant and settled, with cloudless skies and warm temperatures.</p><p>Stuck inside, Kageyama slumped further into his chair, grumbling.</p><p>"How about this," Suga said, far too cheery considering they'd nearly spent two consecutive hours reviewing and correcting last week's unfinished homework. "If you get these last two questions right, we'll stop for today."</p><p>Their impromptu study session had started after Suga had gotten home from work. Kageyama had been uprooting dandelions, kneeling on the ground as he dug into the dirt with a garden spade. Suga had almost walked right by him, content to let the teenager do his own thing. He had his own lessons to plan, after all. But.. but Tobio-kun was frowning down at the weeds, so dedicated and quiet; it would be wrong to leave him outside by himself.</p><p>School work was the first thing that came to mind, but little did Suga know just <em>how much</em> school work there was to go over.</p><p>Kageyama sluggishly repositioned himself, mustering the energy to sit straight and refocus on the remaining questions. Suga took a sip of his tea, watching him over the rim of the cup.</p><p>This unit was all about quadratic equations and distributing quadratic equations and factoring quadratic equations.</p><p>The bane of Kageyama's existence read pleasantly: <em>solve the following expressions, </em>so the teen tried to do just that… Except he didn't even know where to start. Kageyama scrunched up his face, leafing through the scrap paper.</p><p>"Remember," Suga said patiently by his ear, his chair pulled close as he tapped the <em>+33 </em>and <em>+14X </em>of the first question. "What do we do with these numbers?"</p><p>Kageyama thought about it, scanning the red-marked draft paper.</p><p>...Multiply something? Add something? There was some rule in here that he was forgetting. Suga-san said something again, pointing more emphatically at the numbers, and Kageyama wracked his brain for the answer.</p><p>Academics weren't his strong suit, after all.</p><p>Before he'd moved in with his sister, he would spend hours like today working through pages upon pages of homework in the hopes that the confusing words and inconsistent numbers would somehow become more coherent through sheer willpower. Not that it did much good at home, even when he did manage a passing grade. With Miwa, she always tried to help, but it had been too long since she'd been in school, and her reading his textbook aloud didn't help as much as he pretended.</p><p>"Okay," the older man said, with a slight air of tiredness. Kageyama cringed down at the papers in front of him, realizing he'd been staring blankly for too long.</p><p>"We're going to try something new," he continued, and Kageyama followed the movement of the pencil as it drew out a wide X instead of chancing a look at the disappointment on the other man's face. Suga placed the constant on the top and the coefficient on the bottom, leaving the two sides empty.</p><p>"What two numbers can we multiply to get 33 and add to get 14?" he simplified, pushing the paper and pencil in front of the teenager. "When you get your answer, write the numbers here."</p><p>As Kageyama considered the question, he found himself actually <em>understanding</em>. <em>11 and 3!</em> The simplified visuals made the impossibility of the equation look... manageable. He answered the question with a spark of confidence he hadn't felt in a really long time.</p><p>"Yes!" Suga cheered, swiping the paper into his hands and slapping a butterfly sticker onto the corner of the page. His grin was so wide and proud Kageyama couldn't help smiling back, the blue wings of the swallowtail vibrant and bright in the corner of his eye.</p><p>So maybe this wasn't so bad after all.</p><p>He got the last question right on his first try, and he hadn't even needed a hint, either.</p><p>The squirming, wriggly feeling in his stomach came back stronger than ever when Suga laughed, poking his shoulder and saying so sincerely, "I knew you could do it!"</p><p>Kageyama tucked his chin into the collar of his jacket, warming. "Oh… okay. Can... can I go outside now?"</p><p>"Until it gets dark," Suga said, allowing him a few hours before sunset.</p><p>Not needing to be told twice, the teenager raced up the stairs, returned with his volleyball tucked under one arm, and then disappeared out the backdoor with an endearing, lopsided smile.</p><p>Grinning, Suga shuffled the papers together, sliding the extra layers of draft paper inside Kageyama's thin math notebook and organizing the pile of textbooks off to the side.</p><p>Today was really nice, Suga decided resolutely as he stood to follow Tobio-kun outside, stretching his arms above his head. They made good progress.</p><p>As he squinted against the pale sunlight, his mind was already thinking of ways to better explain the teen's English homework. Kageyama seemed to do better with a more visual-spatial approach, so he could try to draw out the different meanings…</p><p>"Ah, you play setter, right?"</p><p>Standing in front of him with a stern-looking expression, Kageyama hesitatingly held out his volleyball.</p><p>Surprised, Sugawara tilted his head and blinked rapidly.</p><p>"Your boyfriend said you did, and I play setter too," he added uncomfortably, bringing the ball back to his chest self-consciously. "So I just thought it'd be—"</p><p>"Yes," Suga interrupted immediately, laughing brightly at the pleased, fuzzy feeling in his chest, "yes, of course I'll play. I'd be happy to!"</p><p>He stepped out onto the garden pebbles to join the teenager with an excited, "So how do you want to do this," closing the door behind him with a gentle click.</p><hr/><p>Daichi eased the front door open, calling out a greeting as he took off his shoes and jacket. He poked his head into the kitchen, expecting to see Koushi reading a trashy romance novel on the couch or maybe Kageyama watching some television.</p><p>"Welcome home," Suga answered back, not looking up. Kageyama was just as focused, murmuring an empty "hi."</p><p>Using the warm orange glow from a floor lamp, the two were kneeling on the floor, opposite a set of flowery playing cards.</p><p>Daichi curiously made his way over, standing behind Suga's shoulder as he took a plum blossom with a dark scroll.</p><p>"Tobio-kun's only played <em>Hanafuda </em>once before, so I'm going easy on him," Suga joked before saying to the teen after he picked up a red-bloomed peony and successfully completed his set, "So now you can either say koi-koi and it'll be double or nothing, or you can stop now and take your points for this round."</p><p>"Okay," Kageyama responded, glancing up from his cards. Daichi subtly shook his head, tilting his chin towards Suga's nearly complete collection. The kid bowed his head, biting down a smile, "Uh, I'll finish?"</p><p>"Aw," Suga whined, before his eyes narrowed with warranted suspicion and he leaned back to glare at his partner. "Did you help him?"</p><p>"Kageyama-kun made the decision," he answered matter-of-factly, raising his hands in surrender and sharing a conspiring look with Kageyama-kun over the top of Suga's head. The teenager's smile widened, and Daichi noticed in the back of his mind that the bruise on the kid's chin had faded into the faintest of yellows.</p><p>"<em>Uh-huh</em>."</p><p>Daichi laughed, "Alright, alright, I'll leave you two alone for now."</p><p>He heard an unsure "koi-koi" when he got to the top of the stairs, and he smiled to himself. It wasn't until he was changing into a light sweater that he realized Kageyama hadn't reacted to his uniform at all.</p><p>"Koi-koi!" his partner exclaimed loudly from downstairs, accompanied with the clacking of the cards thrown together, but then it was almost immediately followed by the nervous laughter of someone who'd messed up.</p><p>Yeah, he was glad to be home.</p><hr/><p>"Home is where the heart is, and my heart is with you," Oikawa teased, flopping into his chair and sending a cocky peace sign to the staff member who was studiously watching him over the top of her hardback. She harrumphed noisily, and Sugawara very pointedly ignored them both.</p><p>"Dramatic, but I'll take that as a yes," Suga answered under his breath, sending Daichi a quick text explaining that they'd have company over Thursday evening. "Bring saké and Iwaizumi-kun."</p><p>"I see who you're really here for, you don't fool me."</p><p>"Who? Iwaizumi-kun? Cause then yes, <em>absolutely</em>. That's not a secret."</p><p>"Wow."</p><p>"Wooow," Suga mimicked back, grinning from ear to ear. Finished with his phone, he set his bento on the table, pushing an apple in front of Oikawa in a generous show of goodwill.</p><p>"I came out to have a good time, and I'm honestly feeling so attacked right now."</p><p>Suga snorted and punched his friend's shoulder, a bit too harshly given the way he floundered and needed to use both his hands to regain his balance. It was well deserved though.</p><p>Once he'd settled back into his chair, that coy, playful look shifted — <em>just so</em> — into something more serious and concerned. It was the smallest of changes: a downward tilt of his chin, a pursed lip, a dark, molten look in his eyes. "Everything okay though? With the teenager?"</p><p>Suga leaned back, crossing his arms as he glanced around at the other tables with forced casualness. Oikawa's frown deepened. "Yeah. He's a good kid."</p><p>"You sure?"</p><p>"What— <em>of course</em> I'm sure!" Suga huffed, affronted. He picked at his rice with a single chopstick. "He hasn't mentioned us being… y'know, in forever. At least a couple days, I'm sure, and he's normally very polite anyway."</p><p>"That's good."</p><p>"Yeah. We played volleyball last night actually, and he's a natural, you wouldn't believe it unless you saw it… what?"</p><p>"I didn't say anything."</p><p>"But you made a face."</p><p>"I didn't make a face."</p><p>"You made... I'm not doing this with you."</p><p>Oikawa smirked around his apple. "Maybe you made the face."</p><p>"I rescind my invitation."</p><p>"No take-backs!" Oikawa sing-songed childishly, waving a hand in the air. "That was part of the deal, Refreshing-kun!"</p><p>"What deal?"</p><p>"To our friendship."</p><p>Well now he felt mean. "Alright fine," he acquiesced with a put-upon sigh, "You are re-invited to dinner tomorrow."</p><p>"If I must," Oikawa returned cheerfully.</p><p>At once, timed to perfection, the two burst into carefree giggles. It was like they were in their own happy little bubble, protected from the judgmental gossip and glares around them.</p><p>"We're so dumb."</p><p>"<em>So</em> dumb."</p><p>Except it doesn't take much for a bubble to pop — just one sharp cough, one 'accidental' push, one snide, cutting remark. This time, however, the needle-pointed edge didn't come from another teacher: it came from one of his students almost two hours later.</p><p>"Your broom is not a lightsaber, Itsuki-kun!" Suga called out, catching the small troublemaker in the act, right before he could start an unprompted battle with two of his friends and make even more of a mess in the room they were trying to clean.</p><p>Pouting, the ten-year-old went back to sweeping the floor, murmuring low <em>pssshew-psshew </em>sounds with every crumpled piece of paper he brushed into the dustpan.</p><p>After a day of hard work, it felt nice to sit back and watch his bright, playful students bound across the classroom, chatting about the latest anime on television or the newest game to hit the market. The windows were wiped, the trash carried out, and the floor swept and mopped to cleanly perfection.</p><p>Suga surveyed the room with a pleased smile, waving to the children as they happily lumbered out the door.</p><p>"That game's so lame, Yūki, take it up the bum hehe," Henkō-kun laughed, throwing his apple-green backpack over one shoulder.</p><p>Yūki-kun blushed to his ears, slumping down as he joined his friend. "Oh, yeah I guess. Lame."</p><p>"Henkō-kun," Suga gasped by the door, thrown by the rough language. The classroom had emptied substantially in the last few minutes, but there were still small groups of children clumped together with no great desire to leave. If they had heard their classmate, none seemed too bothered. "Why did you just say that to your friend?"</p><p>Surprised by the sharp tone, Henkō-kun stopped and explained unsurely, "Because <em>Pokémon: Diamond </em>is boring and slow?"</p><p>The two boys shared a confused look, clearly at a loss for why they were being singled out.</p><p>Suga sighed, trying to quell the frenzied storm of bees in his chest, swarming and stinging and sizzling inside his ribcage. His sweet students were nine, ten years old— he knew, logically, that this was learned behavior, unknowing and unintentional. It wasn't their fault.</p><p>"We're just kidding around, sensei," Yūki-kun defended uncomfortably.</p><p>"It was a joke."</p><p><em>It's just a </em>joke<em>, homo. Don't be so sensitive.</em></p><p>He shook his head, forcefully dislodging the tainted stain of malice from his past.</p><p>"You shouldn't say things like that," Suga urged, softening his tone and smiling gently at the two, hoping that that would be the end of it.</p><p>Instead of taking him at his word, Henkō-kun demanded, "I don't understand, Tomi-sensei would always laugh. Why is it bad?"</p><p>Oh. <em>Of course.</em></p><p>Suga had never been told what had happened with the previous teacher: why<em>, </em>exactly<em>, </em>there was a quiet but quick search in the middle of the school year for a replacement. Oikawa-kun had been especially tight-lipped, dodging all his questions and never failing to change the subject.</p><p>Now it made a little more sense.</p><p>"Because it's hurtful and cruel… When you get older, you'll understand."</p><p>Henkō-kun frowned. "I already know what it means. It's about," his voice dropped into a paranoid whisper, and he cautiously looked around to see if anyone was listening, "<em>sex</em>. But it's bad and weird and gross and <em>wrong </em>'cause it's two <em>guys</em>."</p><p>"Yeah," Yūki added helpfully, "<em>homos</em>."</p><p>Damn that horrible, <em>horrible </em>teacher. He refused to let the man's rancid legacy corrupt these children's brilliant, curious minds.</p><p>"Uh-huh," Henkō nodded, proud of his infallible argument. It didn't last long, though, as he kicked at the ground, asking embarrassedly, "Wait, what's that mean again?"</p><p>Suga answered them both, jumping on the chance to explain, "It's when a boy loves another boy."</p><p>"Oh."</p><p>"That's really boring."</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>Henkō-kun and Yūki-kun turned back to Suga expectantly, and he smiled fondly at how quickly the boys had dismissed the subject altogether once romance came into the picture. He settled back on his heels, relaxing.</p><p>"See, not so weird or wrong after all. Just two people who love each other, like your mom and dad."</p><p>That comparison seemed to clear up any confusion they had about the morality of different sexualities. Afterall, a healthy, loving relationship shouldn't be considered 'wrong' simply because it's not a man and woman.</p><p>"I guessss," he conceded easily enough, but then added more importantly, "But I still think <em>Diamond </em>is—"</p><hr/><p>"—Fantastic! See you there!" Suga hung up the phone, turning his attention back to the English papers strewn across the kitchen table.</p><p>Kageyama stopped scribbling a doodle of a volleyball in the margins to stare back curiously. Suga took that time to ruffle his hair, snorting at how little the teenager had gotten done in the five minutes he'd been on the phone with Daichi.</p><p>"We need to go grocery shopping for tomorrow. Want to come?"</p><p>Kageyama shrugged, in the process of trying to flatten down his hair. It was very clearly not working. "Okay."</p><p>"Finish this first, though."</p><p>The teenager groaned, but it didn't take him too long to fill in the correct verb for the sentence: '<em>everyone </em><em><span>recieved </span></em><em>a letter with information about training' </em>after the elementary teacher correlated the missing word to language commonly used during a volleyball game.</p><p>"Good. But remember, <em>I </em>before <em>E,</em> except after—"</p><hr/><p>"—seafood? Shrimp gyoza maybe? Or no, how about noodles and…"</p><p>He rolled his eyes, trailing after Daichi as he picked up and then discarded different packaged food items every three seconds. They had lost Kageyama a while ago; he'd disappeared down the dairy aisle, and they hadn't regrouped since.</p><p>"Oikawa-kun likes milk bread, if that helps."</p><p>"It doesn't," Daichi answered, but he turned the shopping cart towards the bakery section anyway.</p><p>Suga hid his smile in his scarf, walking by his side. "And Iwaizumi-kun likes agedashi tofu."</p><p>Ten minutes later in the candy aisle, their teenager reappeared, precariously holding five different flavors of milk in an unbalanced pile. His blue eyes were barely visible above the tall, boxy products.</p><p>Daichi sighed. "Go ahead."</p><p>Kageyama's worried expression lifted almost immediately, and he neatly deposited his collection next to the carton of eggs and two indulgent boxes of strawberry and chocolate pocky.</p><p>As a group, they did one last sweep through the big-name aisles: fresh produce, household items, meat… In the personal care section, Suga added two toothbrushes and a bottle of lavender-scented shampoo.</p><p>The baby stuff at the end of the lane brought him up short, however, and he stood to the side, nearly transfixed by the image of an open-mouthed, smiling baby with those big, <em>big </em>eyes.</p><p>This was dumb. He was staring sadly at a bunch of pastel-colored <em>diapers</em>.</p><p>Daichi quietly slipped their hands together, squeezing. The warmth grounded him, and Suga smiled up at his partner, thankful.</p><p>"Pardon me," an elderly woman interrupted, edging her basket around the three. Kageyama immediately stepped back, bumping into Suga who then leaned into Daichi like they were personified falling dominos or something.</p><p>"Sorry," Tobio-kun whispered, at once shuffling a step away and hunching into his timeworn jacket. His hands were starting to slip into the pockets, so with athletic speed, Suga nimbly hooked their arms together and tugged the kid back to his side. He had to laugh at Tobio-kun's wide-eyed, dumbfounded expression.</p><p>"Too slow," he teased, snug and warm in the middle of the group.</p><p>Daichi tried to reclaim his hand when they moved down the aisle, so Suga compromised by linking their arms together instead. This new, weird layout consisted of Kageyama and Daichi holding the cart with their only free hand, while Suga marched between them doing nothing helpful whatsoever. It made pushing their grocery cart very difficult, and it steered too far to the left more often than not. They were lucky it didn't crash into another shopper, to be honest.</p><p>To reward them for only smacking into one shelf (nothing fell, but a few people did look at them funny), Suga took the shopping cart to the checkout line himself, rolling down the pet aisle at a brisk, steady pace. Daichi was quick to follow on his heels, exhausted from all the decisions for the dinner.</p><p>So it was just by chance that he looked back when he did. Halfway down the lane, Kageyama had pulled to a stop, and he'd just given the ceiling cameras a cursory look.</p><p>The police officer part of his brain became on high alert, noting the fidgety hands, the subtle-but-not-subtle-enough checkover for surveillance, the criminal history of minor theft… It didn't need to be spelled out.</p><p>Yet Daichi wanted to trust the kid, and he thought Kageyama wanted to trust them too. Nothing today had suggested anything untoward, but he could never be too sure.</p><p>Against the better part of his professional judgement, he continued after his partner, not looking back. Whatever happened, they would make it right. He was choosing to trust the kid.</p><p>"Hey, where'd you disappear to?" Suga wondered, packing their produce into reusable bags while the clerk efficiently scanned the items. She didn't give either of them more than a single curious glance.</p><p>"Wanted to see something," he said, helping with the groceries.</p><p>Kageyama joined them when there were three items left to pack up. His left hand was in his pocket, and his right... was very clearly holding out a bag of cat treats. "Daichi-san, Suga-san? Can you please buy this for me? I'll pay you back when we get home, I just don't have any money on me and…"</p><p>"Of course," Suga answered, tugging the item free and handing it to the worker to be scanned.</p><p>"And you don't need to pay us back," Daichi added, knowing his partner would agree. "Think of this as an all expenses paid vacation."</p><p>"Oh, are you sure?"</p><p>"We are."</p><p>"Then thank you, Daichi-san, Suga-san!"</p><p>The teen helped them pack up the subaru, keeping the cat food in his hands and smiling to himself. It was a gentle look, different from the excited, wobbly grins or the scary leers.</p><p>For some reason, Suga felt like both smiling and crying at the sight.</p><p>"You alright?" Daichi asked as he buckled his seatbelt and started readjusting the mirrors.</p><p>"I think so," he answered truthfully, looking out the window.</p><p>The car ride was silent but companionable. They all helped carry the groceries inside, and while Suga and Daichi were organizing the fridge and pantry with the new items, Kageyama stepped outside to search for the homeless tabby cat with the sunny-green eyes and curiously striped fur.</p><p>He started with the backyard, following the stepping stones down and around the side of the house. The shrub of camellias was starting to bloom along the border wall, dotting the glossy foliage a brilliant red. Kageyama bent down to smell the petals, closing his eyes and breathing in the faintest hint of jasmine, rich and sweet.</p><p>Around him, the neighborhood was a quiet presence. It was different from the overpacked residential-care facility Kageyama had been forced to call home less than a month ago. There, he never knew what was going to happen — was the staff in a forgiving mood, were the older kids satisfied, was there enough food for dinner and could he sneak some extra into his room that night? — but here, he almost felt secure.</p><p>It was peaceful. Safe.</p><p>He opened his eyes, looking back at the house. A porch light blanketed the garden in an orange sheen, illuminating healthy leaves and delightful bursts of color. The violets looked happy, tall and creamy in their ceramic pot. A full recovery, Kageyama thought.</p><p>"<em>Meeeow</em>."</p><p>The tabby curled around the pot, then padded over to wind around his ankles, peering up at him with bright, curious eyes. A smile burst onto his face, and he leaned down in an excited rush, trying to pull a stick of tuna free. At the sudden, unexpected motion, the stray hissed, slipping away and disappearing inside a low shrub with heart-shaped leaves.</p><p>"Damn it," Kageyama whispered, looking forlornly at the cat treat in his hands.</p><p>The front door opened and he turned at the sound. Suga was leaning against the frame, Daichi a step behind him.</p><p>"Give her time," the older man advised, coming over and crouching down. Glowing eyes peered back at Suga through the leaves. "Slowly."</p><p>Kageyama reached his hand out carefully, holding out the strip of meat.</p><p>The stray watched them for a couple more minutes before ducking under the leaves and coming forward to nibble on the treat. He gave her another one, petting the rough fur in long, gentle strokes.</p><p>"She's cute," Daichi said lowly, standing back and smiling as the others doted on the cat, oscillating between treats and pets between the two of them. The tabby now seemed delighted with the generous attention.</p><p>Before they went inside for dinner, they made sure to leave out a bowl of water and some tuna under an upturned milk crate, wary of larger animals getting into the food.</p><p>"See you later," Kageyama told the cat warmly. The cat watched the door close, meowing softly.</p><p>Above them, the waxing moon rose steadily in the darkened sky.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! I'm sorry again for taking so long with this chapter; I re-wrote it five different times (not exaggerating) and was just not feeling any of it. Ended up watching a video on writer's block, though, and that seemed to help me actually write and keep it down… ANYWAY. We're almost done, whoo! See you next time!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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